Coup d'Etat
by Stylin' Breeze
Summary: Over a year has passed since the overthrow of the tyrant Ushiwaka, and now under President Hinata, the nation of Haikyu knows freedom. But a far-reaching conspiracy threatens to destroy the country's peace. (Cover image by @abeya on tumblr.)
1. Sunset

The sunset cast an ominous red tinge over the horizon as it settled beyond the hills west of Yukigaoka City. Haikyu's stern Prime Minister, Tobio Kageyama, peeked at the clouds through the arching windows of a lavish living room that belonged to the Deputy PM, Toru Oikawa. The manor's glamorous owner sipped a wineglass dry with a satisfied sigh as he lounged in an armchair in front of a sparkling, glass-topped coffee table. Kageyama let the curtain fall and plopped into the sinking cushion of an armchair opposite his cohort. Oikawa chuckled for no apparent reason as he set the empty glass on the table and beamed.

"Quite the eve, don't you think?" he said as if he could read the prime minister's mind. "And fireworks tomorrow to celebrate."

Celebrate they would: 18 months since the death of dictator Wakatoshi Ushijima, known to the people as Ushiwaka, and also the expected culmination of weeklong negotiations between the nation of Haikyu and their longtime rival, Kitagawa. Six months ago, after winning the first free elections in 35 years, the unlikely President Hinata's first proposal was to break the stalemate with their western neighbor by mutually decommissioning part of their ballistic missile stockpiles. It was a landmark step towards peace hailed by the international community and beloved by the citizens seeking something fresh in the wake of the country's brutal past.

And Hinata certainly was a breath of fresh air: energetic, charismatic, popular with the young and forward-thinking, and somehow shrewder than he let on. Kageyama once dreamed he would lead the liberated nation. As a general in the Aoba Johsai Liberation Army, he fought many battles alongside Oikawa, but it was the Karasuno Popular Front under the late General Ikkei Ukai who launched the final assault on Shiratorizawa, Ushiwaka's stronghold, and killed the cowering despot. After he saw Hinata's rise in popularity, Tobio abandoned his own path to power through the AJLA's postwar incarnation as the Seijoh Reform Party and joined the Karasuno Party.

"That must be a really nice daydream, Tobio," Toru joked. Tobio blushed. He had drifted off thinking about the discussions happening 150 miles to the west in the resort town of Tokonami, five miles from the Kitagawan border and where the Kitagawan embassy was provisionally located. Oikawa had invited Kageyama over for drinks, but Kageyama elected to stay sober until all was assured.

"Tell me, Tobio. What would you do if Hinata suddenly weren't president?" Oikawa, liking to wax philosophical, spontaneously asked.

"You mean, if he were overthrown?" Tobio clarified, as he tried to realistically ponder the question.

Oikawa, dressed in a fine suit, making faces in the dish of the wineglass, spoke as if the glass were Kageyama himself.

"Mhm. You know full well some people aren't happy with him." Toru lifted the glass and admired its base, avoiding all eye contact with the prime minister. Although the Aoba Johsai Liberation Army, Karasuno Popular Front, and Nekoma Resistance Front shared equal credit for victory in the six-month civil war, most of the major posts in Hinata's government and military had gone to Karasuno alumni, leading some of the others to feel marginalized. "I trust them, and I know they can do the job," the 25-year-old president once explained to the 31-year-old Kageyama. Hinata's deal with Kitagawa also raised some eyebrows, as many even within Shoyo's own party thought it a dangerous weakening of the nation.

"That's their problem," Tobio spouted. Oikawa grinned jocularly. Truth was Kageyama had an uneasy feeling about tonight, and he also feared Oikawa—a good friend of his from the Seijoh days—might have a differing opinion on the subject.

Kageyama rose and peeked out the curtains again. His heart skipped a beat when he noticed a strange sight outside.

Soldiers. Several of them, fanning out through the garden. Their black and orange uniforms clearly identified them as belonging to the Haikyu Army.

"Toru, those aren't your bodyguards, are they?" Kageyama inquired.

Oikawa shifted the other drape aside and beheld the same sight. There was no reason to discuss it; they knew exactly what was going on. They were being surrounded.

* * *

Keishin Ukai took another whiff of his cigarette as the reddish halo vaporized into a sea of black. It was 7:30pm on a Friday night. This was his time to relax and be by himself. General Ukai, whose grandfather led Karasuno during the civil war and had suffered a fatal heart attack three months ago, was still uncomfortable in his role as Chief of Staff of the Haikyu Army, a job he was pushed into because of family ties, and he had no interest in dealing with his insistent visitor tonight. But alas, 2nd Army commander General Kuroo was en route to complain about yet something else. Ukai wanted another cigarette, he thought.

His secretary's intercom came over with the announcement of Tetsuro Kuroo's arrival. The confident young officer had led the Nekoma Resistance Front, one of various rebel units that spouted up after Ushiwaka bombed protesters, and was the only general not from Karasuno to obtain command of an army in the new administration. Tonight, Kuroo's uniform was spotless, impeccable in fact, compared to Ukai's shabby, un-ironed cuffs and tar-stained jacket.

"What is it, Kuroo?" Ukai rebuffed, stretching his arms over his head and extinguishing his cigarette.

"I have an urgent question for you, General," began Kuroo.

"And it couldn't wait till morning?" Ukai, his chest to the sunset, glanced over his shoulder at Kuroo.

"General, tomorrow the deal will be signed eliminating half of our missile capabilities. How do you feel about that?"

"You know exactly how I feel about it. It's a fool's errand. We've no guarantee Kitagawa will hold up their end of the bargain, and it will weaken our military beyond belief."

Kuroo slammed his fist on Ukai's oak desk violently. "You know all this, and you still acceded?!"

Ukai spun threateningly around. "What else could I do? The man's determined to change this country, no matter how much he screws us over."

"And what if some people made a move to save the country?" Kuroo slyly inquired.

The room fell silent as a stoic Ukai glared at his subordinate's devilish grin. Though he didn't want to believe it, he had a feeling he knew where this was going. And Ukai knew his answer to the question too. He lit another cigarette.

Casually Ukai walked around his desk until wriggling himself in front of Kuroo's chair, one palm on the table behind him to prop himself up, the other hand levitating the cigarette as it steamed peacefully.

"If some people tried to use force to prevent this deal from happening…" Ukai took another whiff of his cig and leaned close to Kuroo. "…I'd have every one of them shot." He casually blew a cloud of tobacco and nicotine over Kuroo's visage. The 2nd Army general failed to flinch. Instead, he beamed evilly.

"I was afraid you'd say that," he chuckled. "Too bad you don't need the moon to see at night."

Ukai felt the abstract remark was a signal, and he got his answer when the doors to his office burst open. Keishin snarled. If he had thought ahead, he would not have positioned himself out of reach of his gun holster lying in his chair or the revolver in his desk drawer. It was too late now. Two soldiers led by Kuroo's subordinate, 11th Division commander Lieutenant-General Takanobu Aone, had Ukai at gunpoint. The very fact they were here meant Kuroo's men had already taken over the headquarters.

"Curse you, Kuroo," Ukai shuddered, letting his cigarette fall to the ground and stomping on it. Unfortunately, Ukai had been too lazy to appoint a deputy chief of staff, meaning in his incapacitation there was no one who would automatically command the nation's military. He had only one hope: that Haikyu's best and most talented general would step in and save the country before it was too late. "Whatever your plan," Ukai growled as the soldiers proceeded to detain their superior officer, "Sugawara won't play along."

Kuroo laughed raucously. "Oh, don't worry, Keishin," he answered, dropping all formality. "I've got my own plans for dealing with Suga."

* * *

Night had already befallen Yukigaoka City, but in the pristine, southwestern city of Tokonami, President Shoyo Hinata propped himself on a balcony railing as he enjoyed the crisp, seaside air of the bay at dusk. Haikyu was bordered by two countries, Kitagawa to the west and Miyagi to the east, with the north and south fronting ocean. Visible across the inlet on a clear day were the shores of Kitagawa , and Hinata took full pride in the fact that tomorrow he would have made their countries closer. Beside him, his secretary Yachi sat in a lounge chair with a notepad, ever ready to receive dictation. Lieutenant Yuu Nishinoya, as Captain of the Presidential Guard, obsessively scanned nearby rooftops and balconies for assassins. Hinata had elected to stay at the traditional Black Crow Hotel near downtown. Formerly known as the White Eagle Hotel, the lavish Ushiwaka would often take over the whole building for vacations, but as if contrasting himself with his predecessor, Hinata elected for a simple room on the fifth floor. It was a security nightmare for Nishinoya's staff, but Shoyo insisted that he couldn't bear to stay in any of the luxurious venues recommended to him. That kind of passionate idealism was part of Hinata's charm in Yachi's eyes.

Below them a cat dove at a murder of crows pecking at trash, scaring the flock into flight. The collective wind of their wings rustled the hair of the trio on the balcony when the door slid open ahead of foreign minister Tsukishima.

"Ambassador Nakashima and I have resolved the last details. I'll just need you to sign off on them, Mr. President," he reported. Hinata's face lit up. At last, after five days of grueling back-and-forth, the arms pact was complete. Tomorrow, 18 months after the end of the Haikyu Civil War, Hinata will have made the country a safer place with a brighter future. Shoyo jumped with jubilation like a child, making the fickle Yachi laugh. Even Nishinoya neglected his paranoia of snipers to admire his president's youthful optimism.

When the crack ripped through the air, Noya realized he never should have taken his eyes off the rooftops.

Shoyo clasped his right shoulder and collapsed on a table, knocking it over and making Yachi scream. Tsukishima dived at the leader as Noya's head jerked to try and find the source of the sniper shot. Black crow feathers floated around him—the bullet having cut through one of the unlucky birds—but even so, the "Libero" as he was known in the war distinctly spotted a man with smooth silver hair ducking behind the eaves atop an apartment complex.

Tsukishima's desperate screams snapped Noya out of his momentary anger, and immediately they carried Shoyo inside onto the queen bed. Yachi sobbed uncontrollably as she closed the balcony door and curtains on Noya's orders. It was hoped that a regular hotel room might actually be less conspicuous, but the media made a huge deal of Hinata's modest accommodation. Now the future of Haikyu was in jeopardy as blood dribbled from the orange-haired president's shoulder onto the comforter.

"Kei, watch him," Noya barked and left the room, immediately alerting his soldiers to the security breach. Tsukishima shoved a hand towel Yachi grabbed from the bathroom on Hinata's wound. A minute ago, Kei was grateful that the long hours of dealing with envoys and military reps were over. Now that pained gasping and frantic bodyguards filled the space, Haikyu's foreign minister wished he could have 12 more days of those dull meetings instead.


	2. Roundup

Traffic in Yukigaoka City was a nightmare, but this—this was ridiculous. 7:30PM on a Friday night, and the capital's central Promenade was a literal gridlock. Education Minister Ittetsu Takeda tapped his fingers on the steering wheel amidst the standstill. Above the train of cars he could detect the glimmer of flashing red and blue. Was there an accident? He squinted through the glare on his windshield down the driver's side of the row of cars to spy two police officers paused beside one vehicle. One toted a submachinegun as the other conversed with each driver, apparently checking IDs, then moved on to the next. Another semiautomatic-carrying police officer flanked each car on the other side. It reminded the 38-year-old Takeda of the checkpoints in the Ushiwaka era. However, there was no way Hinata or anyone in the Karasuno Party would resort to such measures in the age of freedom. Takeda decided to go right to the source as he retrieved his cell phone from the cup holder.

* * *

In the center of the capital was a cul-de-sac named Ministry Street on which sat various government and administrative offices with the presidential estate at its culmination—although on a Friday evening, most of the bureaucrats and cabinet members had already gone home. A few this particular night stayed back awaiting word from Tokonami about the sealed arms deal. Inside his spacious office on the third floor of one of the buildings, Interior Minister Ryunosuke Tanaka occupied a cushioned, highback swivel chair, the walls lined with books (purely for decoration) and posters of exaggerated muscle men. His cell phone lying to the side, Tanaka hunched over the desk battling with action figure wrestlers. The obnoxious buzzing of his phone's vibrate startled him, almost flinging the toys across the room.

"Yo, what is it?" Tanaka rambled into the phone, trying not to sound flustered.

"Oh, good, Tanaka. You're still there?" began Takeda. "Hey, so looks like the police have a checkpoint or something on the Promenade. What's going on?"

Tanaka blinked dumbly. Checkpoints were a thing of the past, and any security threat that would prompt blocking the city's main thoroughfare should have certainly reached the interior minister's ears, since he had supreme authority over all the police. He briefly wondered if the cause were buried in the mound of untouched paperwork at the corner of his desk.

"Dunno. What are they doing?" he asked as he began skimming the top few pages.

"They're checking IDs I think," replied Takeda. He wiggled his head to get a better view. The police officers were just finishing with the car in front of him and returning the owner's license. Then the lead inspector indifferently glared at Takeda's vehicle as he led his machinegun-armed escort towards the education minister.

"I'll check with Kenma," Ryunosuke said, as he swiftly gave up on the paperwork scan.

"Cool. Uh, they're coming to me, so I'll tell you what I learn." Takeda hurriedly put down the phone and scrambled to find the button to roll down his window as the inspector peevishly hovered outside his door. The two heavily armed officers took a position either side of the front seats.

"Just one second," Takeda communicated after finally rolling his window down as he wrestled his wallet from his pocket and the license from a pouch. As he handed it to the guard, he could see the lead policeman held a clipboard. The man ran his eyes from the license to the clipboard to Takeda's face several times.

"I sure hope you find the guy," Takeda remarked. The inspector straightened up staunchly.

"We just did," he replied before clicking two fingers above his head. Immediately the two other guards trained the sights of their guns on Ittetsu. Takeda shrunk back fearfully. "Get out of the vehicle," the lead inspector ordered.

"Look," Takeda began, "I really don't know what this—" As he stammered, the inspector sternly whisked open the unlocked door, threw down his clipboard, clasped Takeda by the collar, and yanked him onto the street. The other two officers tiptoed around the arrestee, their guns ready to kill at the first sign of resistance. "Please stop!" Takeda begged as the inspector handcuffed him. His head rocking on the pavement, Takeda glimpsed the discarded clipboard nearby. It held a printout of various black-and-white photographs of people scarily familiar to Takeda: the entire ministerial cabinet.

* * *

With shoulders back, spine straight, and chin up, Kenma Kozume gained two inches on his normal stature. An unusual posture, Haikyu's Commander of the Police Forces always assumed it when summoned by his boss, Ryunosuke Tanaka. While Tanaka held overall authority over the police, Kenma handled the direct administration. The individual police chiefs of the various cities reported directly to Kozume and so the chain of command went. As usual, Kenma's prim red uniform and black cap shone from compulsive polishing—the color scheme inspired by the old Nekoma Resistance Front's ensemble—and made him look otherwise dapper except for the black streak down the center of his lanky blond hair.

"Looks like Bokuto put checkpoints on the Promenade," Tanaka, his elbows atop the desk supporting his slouch, commenced. "Y'know anything?"

"No, sir," replied Kozume.

"Of course you don't," Tanaka sighed before his eyes glazed over. Any kind of mass traffic stop in the capital without consultation with Kenma or Tanaka was a no-no, so the very fact this had been undertaken without either of their knowledge was suspicious. He also couldn't help but be concerned Takeda never called him back despite saying he would. And then added to the mix was Yukigaoka's sly, loud-mouthed, enigmatic police chief, Kotaro Bokuto—a man almost universally distrusted.

Kenma tensely gazed at his boss's stupor when Tanaka's cell phone rumbled across the desktop. Tanaka was so lost in thought Kozume had to point it out. Ryu checked the screen to find a hastily composed text message from Tsukishima reporting probably the worst news of the evening: Hinata had been shot but was alive and recovering. Tanaka spat in frustration.

"Well, looks like we just got our answer," he grumbled, sliding the phone away.

"W-what is it?" Kenma stuttered.

"Hinata's been shot."

Kenma bit his lip anxiously. "How is he?"

"'Cording to Tsukishima, he's fine." Kenma exhaled with relief before Tanaka continued: "But no way this is a coincidence." He rose, spreading his fingers across the desk. "Find Bokuto and pummel that jerk until you get all the answers from him," Tanaka commanded. "And I want this police crackdown cracked up!"

Kozume ignored the pun, instead saluted professionally, and marched out of the room, his shoulders hunching normally as soon as he left Tanaka's presence. Alone again, Tanaka flopped back into the chair, his arms languidly swaying beside it. He rocked himself morosely. Yup, he had been right to distrust Bokuto all along. The only reason the man had been made the capital city's police chief was so Tanaka and Kenma could keep an eye on him. If only they had intercepted this plot sooner, he groaned.

* * *

Slumped over the steering wheel, his cap illuminated by a streetlight overhead penetrating the windshield of his ten-year-old sedan, Kenma Kozume pressed his cell phone to his ear, warily scanning the empty parking lot as dusk gave in to nighttime. The phone rang until Kotaro Bokuto picked up.

"Hey, hey, hey," chortled Yukigaoka's police chief. "What you got?"

"The crow flies. The cat guards the dump," Kenma stated in code. He jerked the phone from his eardrum as Bokuto let out an agonizing, melodramatic squeal.

"How?! How?! Gah!" Bokuto yowled before finally calming himself. "So, Kenma, what are you going to do?"

"I won't betray Hinata while he's alive," answered Kenma quietly.

"No!" Bokuto rebuked. "You're dead if you back out now!" Kenma knew it probably wasn't an empty threat, but before he could say any more, he heard the rustling of Kotaro flinging his cell phone violently at the floor.

Far away in the confines of a cramped, disheveled office at Yukigaoka police headquarters, wherein stacks of paperwork had been shuffled onto the floor so every tabletop could be replaced by maps of the city charting the police's and army's movements, Kotaro Bokuto huffed as his phone lay atop some inmate's futile application for clemency. Despite being displeased with the president's security and military agenda, Kenma Kozume rather fancied Shoyo Hinata, so, when approached a month ago about the possibility of a change in leadership, Kozume was quite adamant he would not turn on the president. It was just a matter of removing Hinata first then, and Bokuto had been assured by the coup's architect that the nation's best sharpshooter, Lev Haiba of the Nekoma Resistance Front, would indubitably accomplish the task. Now Kenma's code phrase indicated Hinata had survived, and about that there was nothing more Kotaro could do. Bokuto's job was to detain the Karasuno cabinet and restrict movement across the city while Kuroo's divisions occupied the major targets. He had banked on Kenma's support to lure a number of cabinet members to one location where Bokuto could arrest them, but Kenma's sudden cold feet was not a major loss. He already had Takeda in custody, as well as the trade and agriculture ministers with raids on several cabinet members' homes soon to take place. Hinata alive or not, Kenma's choices were simple: join the coup or join the cabinet in prison. Bokuto quite enjoyed the exhilaration actually.

Kenma picked up the rhythm of faint giggling before Bokuto spoke again. "Have it your way, Kenma. I'll just have my men arrest you too." And he hung up swiftly, leaving Kozume alone to contemplate in silence.

Why hadn't he reported Bokuto sooner? Kenma wondered. When the conniving police chief hinted of a possible overthrow, Kozume expressed sympathy for a change from a Karasuno-centered government if something were to happen to Hinata but told himself Bokuto's treasonous insinuations were a joke. How foolish was he to think that? During the war, Bokuto had formed one of the smaller rebel bands known as the Night Owls, comprised primarily of defectors from Ushijima's notorious Fukurodani Brigade. That unit had been involved in some of the more gruesome acts of Ushiwaka's oppression, but the provisional government had granted amnesty to anyone that betrayed the dictator. That meant despite many questions about his innocence, 28-year-old Kotaro Bokuto had gotten away with murder. There was no reason, Kenma lamented, why the man wouldn't try to do it again.

"What are you going to do now?" Bokuto had asked. Indeed, what was Kenma going to do now? He didn't know how badly, but because of his foolishness, his friend Hinata had been hurt. As long as Hinata was alive, somehow he would take down Bokuto and stop the coup, if it were possible. Yes, as long as Hinata were alive, he would turn the nation against Bokuto if he had to. His first order of business: ensure loyalty of the rest of the nation's police force.

* * *

Moments earlier, Tokonami police chief Hayato Ikejiri had received a dispatch from commander Kenma Kozume advising all departments of treasonous activity in Yukigaoka City and beseeching fidelity to the legitimately elected administration. Ikejiri didn't have to do much to prove his loyalty. When the dispatch arrived, his men had already trapped Hinata's suspected assassin in a decommissioned factory near downtown Tokonami.

An unmarked police car pulled up beside Ikejiri's position on a corner of the factory, from which emerged Yuu Nishinoya with several more of Ikejiri's officers. Once termed the "Libero," Nishinoya was credited with more kills than any other soldier in the civil war and was renowned for his eagle-like sight and reflexes. One story had it that he infiltrated an enemy bunker and singlehandedly killed 20 people without any of them laying a scratch on him. Seeing the legend face-to-face, Ikejiri was surprised how short the man was in real life, even smaller than Hinata.

From a corner window on the third floor of the factory, a sweating and panting Lev Haiba couldn't believe his eyes. During the war, the Nekoma sharpshooter had 41 recorded kills, the overall record for snipers. That prowess was called upon to liquidate President Hinata, yet by some miracle a crow had scuttled right in the path of the bullet, ever so slightly altering the trajectory to hit Hinata in the shoulder and not the skull. Lev couldn't risk returning to the base and implicating anyone else in the coup, so here was his last stand. And taking out Hinata's zealous bodyguard might well be the chance to redeem himself as he stealthily trained his rifle on Nishinoya.

"The target is somewhere on the third floor and has already hit a couple of my men," Ikejiri briefed Noya. "He's an excellent shot and almost never misses." Nishinoya scanned each and every window, several of which were broken out or missing panes. Then a glint inside one of the broken panes alerted him to a sniper scope.

"Get down!" he cried. A rifle shot pocked the pavement where Nishinoya stood just as he leapt on Ikejiri, throttling them both to the ground. The crack of police return fire echoed, but Lev had already retreated. Nishinoya whipped out a handgun, deciding to take matters into his own hands. It was time to reenact the legendary bunker raid.

"Cover me," Noya commanded before he leapt over the hood of a police cruiser and charged the building. From another window, Lev spotted his foe storming the ramparts but couldn't get a steady aim. Finally Nishinoya dived through a first-floor window, landing adroitly inside the structure. He clambered up an interior fire escape to the third floor then took cover behind a rusted generator.

Rows of dingy crimson generators lined either side of an open atrium as pipes fed crossways to and from the machines. Noya crept behind one of the rows, sneaking across the gap between dynamos as fast as possible. As he gazed around the corner of one machine, Lev appeared from behind a generator on the opposite side with rifle propped up. The bullet zipped by Noya's face as he narrowly dodged. Yuu took a moment to observe the crater made by the bullet on the wall, well aware the only reason he was alive was his own reflexes. At a distance, he would lose this fight.

Nishinoya checked for a way to close the gap, spotting the cross-feeding pipes overhead that stretched over the central mall between the rows. It was a long shot, but he'd try it. Noya dashed into the opening, propelled himself onto a generator, then sprinted down a pipe above the floor toward Haiba's side of the room. Lev searched for his foe when he heard the clang of Noya's footsteps reverberating above him. Haiba tried sprinting for new cover as Noya took away his options, but the Libero fired a shot from his pistol, piercing Lev beside his spine. The would-be assassin fumbled and wedged his back inside a square cutout in the wall where a window frame once existed. He raised his rifle to retaliate, but Nishinoya discharged a few more bullets, striking Lev in the arms and disarming him. Haiba pressed into the hole as Noya sauntered toward him, pistol at the ready. It was over.

"Who's behind this?" questioned Noya. Lev snarled. It seemed the Libero was already aware that a much larger scheme lay behind the assassination attempt. But perhaps he didn't know just how deep the conspiracy went, and Lev had no intention of enlightening his opponent. He was now only sorry that he wouldn't be around to see the end result of the insurgency.

"Why would I tell you?" he retorted. "Even if I didn't kill Hinata, somebody else will."

"Who will?!" an irritated Noya roared. Haiba formed a snakelike grin then tilted his torso forward as if to lunge. Noya planted his feet firmly, ready to disable Haiba at a moment's notice with another bullet. Instead of attacking, however, Lev recoiled backward, curving his body through the missing window and down to the street below. Nishinoya frantically peered out only to have the perplexed police cordon confirm the worst. The sniper's mangled body, his neck bent inhumanly, spoiled the sidewalk below.

Searching the deceased assassin's body minutes later, Yuu and Hayato Ikejiri made at least one intriguing find: a military ID, identifying the man as a sharpshooter from the 26th Regiment of the 3rd Army's 12th Division—a unit stationed in Tokonami.


	3. The Hardship of President

Haikyu's Minister of Youth and Culture Kiyoko Shimizu flipped through the 8:30PM news. Befuddled journalists were reporting police roadblocks across the capital while witnesses heard a gunshot near the Black Crow Hotel in Tokonami before the police swarmed an old factory. A hasty press conference on the Black Crow's doorstep presented by Foreign Minister Kei Tsukishima offered scant information other than that authorities were investigating and that the president was well. Sooner or later, Kiyoko's phone had to ring and at last it did.

"I just wanted to make sure you were all right, Kiyoko!" Interior Minister Tanaka glibly chimed. Shimizu was used to Tanaka's flirtations, and if she had to put up with them to find out what was going on, she would.

"Is Hinata all right? What's going on with the police?" she asked.

"Tsukishima says he's fine. I have Kenma searching for Bokuto to wring his neck." Then Ryu remembered the beauty he was talking to, and his voice jumped an octave again. "But how 'bout you, Kiyoko? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Kiyoko calmly reported. "Is Asahi aware?" she added, inquiring about the vice-president.

"Haven't spoken to Daichi so dunno." Daichi Sawamura was the presidential liaison to the cabinet of ministers. Ordinarily updates on Hinata's health would have come through Sawamura, but given the unique circumstances, Kei had notified a few of the most important officials directly. "But, Kiyoko, I'm worried about you! I think Bokuto might be after you," he added alluringly.

"Oh?" she voiced, faking intrigue.

"I was talking to Takeda, and now I can't get a hold of him. I think Bokuto might be searching for everyone in the cabinet, and that includes you! That's why I called to warn you first!" Shimizu rolled her eyes; as she predicted, Tanaka's motives weren't wholly pure.

The youth and culture minister took a moment to process the situation. An assassination attempt on the president and a roundup of cabinet members, most of whom were Karasuno Party politicians: it was the obvious signs of a coup. She also reluctantly recalled a government function a few months ago at which Kotaro Bokuto made a pass at her, so the thought of being the police chief's prisoner was even more revolting.

"Now I do want to point out," Ryu quipped, "that it is me calling you and not that nobody Noya. That's gotta mean something, right?" Kiyoko sighed. Tanaka's endless war to win Shimizu's attractions needed to be stifled immediately under the circumstances. And that would require being a little harsher than usual.

"Nishinoya didn't call me because his job is to protect the president," she categorically stated, "which I am sure he is doing, and I very much admire him for that. And you have a job of calling the other ministers too, do you not, Tanaka?" She perfunctorily hung up and settled into the sofa. "I _admire_ Nishinoya?" she repeated allowed after a pause. That was maybe too harsh.

As she thumbed through her phone contacts list, Kiyoko assessed her options. Members of the cabinet were supposed to rendezvous at the Supreme Court in event of an emergency on Ministry Street, but Bokuto could easily round them up there. As youth and culture minister, she had a bounty of contacts with whom she could shelter until things cooled down. And then her thumb floated above the name Yui Michimiya. There was someone she could definitely trust.

Half an hour later, a squad from the Yukigaoka City police kicked down the door of Kiyoko Shimizu's residence. The men ransacked the home, but the cabinet minister was nowhere to be found. Neither was her cell phone, which had been reset as a precaution and ditched in the trashcan outside.

It was several minutes before anyone found the body of Ryunosuke Tanaka slumped over his desk. At first there was panic as people searched for a killer until the staffer who discovered him realized his boss, cradling his cell phone in his hand, was in fact alive, sobbing and babbling: "How can an angel be so cruel?!"

* * *

Heavy drapes in the fifth-floor hotel room separated Shoyo Hinata from the world. The bullet had only grazed his right shoulder, yet the president solemnly sank into the room's queen bed underneath three layers of linens regardless. His secretary, Hitoka Yachi, curled forward silently in a chair between the bed and the curtains while Kei slouched in front of a sideboard at the foot of the bed. The clock ticked closer to nine, and the sensible Tsukishima felt both relief and concern that the annoyingly vibrant Hinata had said little since the incident. For Yachi, a few years younger than her boss, she had seen this before though. Few had noticed that over the past couple of months, Shoyo's excitability had waned. Over an hour ago, Hitoka was happy to see Shoyo so jubilant over the arms deal that he leapt like a child, but this more sullen Hinata echoed his general melancholy of late.

"Hey, smile," came a strained voice from the bed directed at Hitoka. Yachi jolted as Kei sprang up. Hinata forced his spine upright.

"Mr. President, you shouldn't be moving!" Tsukishima commanded.

"It's fine," Hinata meekly urged. Kei grunted then adjusted the pillows to support the president's back. "Oh, thanks, Tsukishima. You're actually kind sometimes," he remarked with a grin, not realizing his choice of words wasn't a compliment. Shoyo then gazed at the unusually forlorn woman beside him.

"I'm fine, Yachi," he croaked. Hitoka gazed at him but simply nodded, unconvinced.

"There appears to be a coup in the capital, sir," Kei interrupted. Hinata's neck swiveled towards his foreign minister. "Sawamura and Asahi want your direction."

Hinata bit his lip nervously. "They do?"

"You _are_ the president, remember?" Kei retorted as he handed his cell for Hinata to borrow. Shoyo took the device shakily and gazed at the screen. Ever since being elected, Hinata had doubts about his qualifications, but the last two months those doubts had grown stronger. He tried covering them up with enthusiasm, but Yachi, he sensed, had noticed he was forcing himself. And now some people felt Hinata was so unsuited for the job that, for the nation's sake, he had to die. Hinata had never been shot before; even when he worked as a blogger for Yamaguchi's social media division in the Karasuno Popular Front, he never dreamed he would actually have a bullet clip him. Suddenly the world felt dangerous, and it was a world he wanted no part of.

"Here, I'll dial," Kei interposed as he snatched the phone. He handed it back to Shoyo ringing. And then came the vice-president's voice over the receiver:

"Tsukishima, what's up? How's Hinata?" Asahi asked, reacting to the caller ID.

"I'm f-fine," Shoyo stuttered. Asahi gasped.

"Hinata! Are you all right?! Daichi's here too. We were awaiting your orders."

Orders? What orders? Hinata thought. He had no right to this job. Even though Daichi had recommended him as Karasuno's presidential nominee and even if he was legitimately elected by the whims of the people, he had no right doing a job that Asahi or Kageyama were substantially more qualified for. Now was as good as any time to get out.

"Um, Asahi, why don't you give the orders?" Hinata's quivering voice came over the speaker in the VP's office. Asahi held the phone horizontally by his mouth while Shoyo's words broadcast loud enough for Daichi to hear. Both were perplexed.

"Um, sure," Asahi began tentatively, "if you're not well enough yet…. But the people need to know you're alive in order to calm them and, uh, reassure them."

"We have to time it right too," interjected Daichi, "so the coup plotters don't come after you again."

"Yeah," Hinata continued, "and, um, they should come after me, I guess. Because…I don't think I can do this, you know? This is your, um—what's the word?—juri—expertise! Yeah, expertise. Or something like that…."

"What are you saying, Hinata?" questioned Asahi.

"That I, um, I…quit."

In his room within the president's compound on Ministry Street, Asahi gaped in shock. Unlike Sawamura and Kageyama—who vocally vouched for Hinata as the only person who should rule this country—Asahi held a milder view. He even thought it was a joke when Daichi recommended Hinata to the Karasuno Party's election committee as their presidential candidate. When Shoyo won the nomination, party bosses spited Sawamura by forcing Asahi, the former favorite, to be Hinata's running mate. Nobody expected Shoyo to last very long, and yet the 25-year-old's frequent buttressing from the persistent Sawamura and the enigmatic Kageyama had kept the giddy, spiky-haired boy sane.

"Asahi, give me the phone," Sawamura demanded. And now it looked as if Hinata's liaison with the ministerial cabinet would rescue Hinata's sanity again.

"Hinata, can you hear me?" he barked, deactivating the speakerphone.

"Oh, hi, Daichi," Hinata pleasantly began.

"Don't 'hi' me," Sawamura rebuffed. "What is this nonsense? Why did I push for you as our party's nominee again? Remember? Because only you can save this country from falling back into an era like Ushiwaka's!"

"Why do you keep saying that?" Hinata weakly protested. He truly didn't understand why his former campaign manager had so much faith in him.

"We can talk about that later," resumed Daichi, "but right now you need to act. You're in good hands with Noya, so I've no regrets in letting you stay where you are. We'll handle things until you're ready to step in. But soon, you need to snap out of it and step up, because your dreams for this country are the only thing giving us, this nation, and its people hope. Your ideas for this nation are the very reason this coup is happening. They know you pose a threat to the old order, and that's why they want to get rid of you. If you quit, they've won!"

Hinata quaked as he tried to internalize the words, yet no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make himself feel as confident as Daichi was. He wanted to apologize for not being able to embrace Sawamura's faith in him but knew it would only irk his associate more.

"OK," Hinata murmured. "I…I'll do that." It occurred to him he didn't remember what "that" was.

"Good! We'll take care of things here, but no one can get a hold of General Ukai or Kageyama. Asahi, Tanaka, me, and the rest of us will do our best, but you may already be the last person able to lead a counterattack against these felons." Hinata gulped. It wasn't what he wanted to hear. "Talk with you soon," Daichi concluded before hanging up and returning Azumane's phone. Asahi grimaced, feeling a little uneasy entrusting the matter to Shoyo.

"Why do you believe so strongly in Hinata?" he inquired.

"Because Hinata is the only person who truly believes his ridiculous ideas can come true," Daichi answered, almost as if complaining.

"Isn't that why he's _not_ qualified?" queried Asahi.

"That's exactly why he's qualified. I meant what I said. Just because Ushiwaka's gone doesn't mean the attitudes, the institutions, and the power structure that empowered him for 35 years are gone. Hinata believes this country could be a true, free, safe democracy overnight. It can't, but we have to believe it can or people like these criminals will resurrect a new Ushiwaka!"

Asahi sighed. Maybe Daichi was right; maybe not. It changed nothing of the current circumstances. They had lost control of the local police and perhaps even the military too. Their only option until Hinata recovered—whenever that would be—was to regroup and strategize. And if Hinata wasn't going to address the media, they would have to do it themselves.

* * *

Tokonami police chief Hayato Ikejiri stepped warily into the office of 12th Division commander Lieutenant-General Taketora Yamamoto and soon learned his request for a private meeting had been disregarded. Yamamoto grimly swayed in a swivel chair, his cap-less head exposing a rather unprofessional yellow Mohawk atop black fuzz. Beside his desk, Lieutenant Kentaro Kyotani, commander of Yamamoto's 26th Regiment, tucked his cap under his armpit exposing fair blond hair save for striking horizontal black streaks behind the ears. His face contorted vilely as if ready to pounce.

"I asked Lieutenant Kyotani to join us, since Lev was in his regiment," Yamamoto extended. "So, what do you need?"

Ikejiri ignored the affront and took a seat opposite Yamamoto. "As I mentioned, Lev Haiba attempted to assassinate the president earlier this evening. Do you have any information on his behavior or relationships that might have presaged his intent?" Taketora and Lev had served in the Nekoma Resistance Front together, so it was hoped the commander would have some special, personal insight.

Instead, a perturbed Yamamoto leaned across his desk, shooting his face out melodramatically. "You accusin' me of tryin' to kill the prez?" Hayato winced but remained stolid. The man's punkish behavior reminded him vaguely of his boss, Ryunosuke Tanaka.

"No, sir, that is not my insinuation—"

"I bet it is," Yamamoto persisted. "I bet that's why you came here: to call me a traitor, huh?" A guttural grunt emanated from Lieutenant Kyotani, apparently directed at his superior. Yamamoto froze before backing off and recomposing himself. "So the answer to your question is no. And I refuse to entertain your allegations without any proof."

Hayato frowned. Considering the situation in the capital, this was not the time for stonewalling. "General, may I remind you of the disorder in Yukigaoka City?"

"What about it?" Yamamoto growled.

"There is an active insurgency intending to overthrow the president as we speak. Lev Haiba played a chief role in that insurgency, and it is my duty and yours as defenders of this country to identify everyone involved and quell it. Failure to cooperate at a time like this will appear nothing short of suspicious."

Yamamoto puckered his lips and marched out from behind his desk. "Tell me, bruh, was it one of your men who killed Lev?" he inquired calmly.

"If you must know, it was the Libero," answered Hayato before smirking as he fondly remembered the Noya's daring infiltration of Lev's dugout. "I dare say the legend of his prowess is true."

Yamamoto gazed off as if in a trance. "Then I hope I get to vanquish that legend," Taketora voiced. Instantly a handgun was thrust in Hayato's visage wielded by the lieutenant-general.

"Let me make this clear," Yamamoto threatened. "I don't like two-bit cops that think they can order the military around, capiche?" He clicked his fingers above his head. Lieutenant Kyotani promptly grappled the police chief's arms and dragged Ikejiri from the office. Hayato screeched and wrestled to escape, but the lieutenant's grip was as tough as a rabid dog.

Once Ikejiri was across the threshold and on his way to the barracks' jail, Yamamoto slammed the door, throttled himself into his chair, and rocked peevishly. It was inconceivable that Lev, the nation's greatest sharpshooter, had failed. With Hinata dead, Yamamoto's job should have been to defer suspicion while Kuroo, Bokuto, and the coup's mastermind subjugated the capital. Instead, Hinata was alive and Lev was dead, and Kuroo's newest orders demanded Yamamoto liquidate the president at whatever cost.

He growled. Unlike the 2nd Army, all three of whose divisions supported the coup, Yamamoto commanded a lone unit against two loyalist divisions and the 3rd Army's commander, Chikara Ennoshita. He was not equipped for a full-scale uprising. Just before Ikejiri's arrival, Taketora received a summons from Ennoshita to come to the general's headquarters near Chidoriyama Airfield, presumably to guard the missile stockpile there which should have been decommissioned per the treaty with Kitagawa. And then Yamamoto sneered. When Kyotani returned, he ordered his subordinate to ready his regiment to head to Ennoshita's office.


	4. Puppet Master

**Couple more introductions before action returns soon...**

* * *

Haikyu's eastern frontier comprised arid, rolling hills dotted by oases and ethnic tribes, the most infamous town being Shiratorizawa. Nestled on a plateau beneath the mountains, the city was Wakatoshi Ushijima's birthplace and final redoubt. There, 18 months ago, the civil war ended when the Karasuno Popular Front and Nekoma Resistance Front converged on the stronghold.

Now Shiratorizawa once again was the focus of the nation's freedom. Since the dictator's demise, two loyalist uprisings in the region were swiftly crushed by the Haikyu military's two strongest armies: the 5th Army of Hisashi Kinoshita and the 1st Army of Koushi Sugawara. Sugawara now gazed out the window of his field command post at the light patch of clouds obscuring the moon. A guard on patrol passed across his field of vision and peeked at Suga's lamp-lit window. Spotting the general, the soldier offered a friendly wave. Koushi, who always kept his blinds open in order to see his men, waved back with a tenuous smile.

The two-room bungalow at the center of the camp housed Suga and his chief of staff Keiji Akaashi's offices. Akaashi, his uniform absolutely perfect, towered stolidly by the door to the adjoining room while Koushi nervously pondered the memo Keiji had placed on his desk and which Suga had read several times. The message from 2nd Army commander Kuroo warned of a coup and an assassination attempt on President Hinata. Preliminary intelligence, Tetsuro claimed, indicated a 2,000-strong fighting force at Shiratorizawa, implicating Ushijima diehards in the scheme. Military HQ had already been conquered, prompting Kuroo's informal dispatch. The letter strongly insinuated that Suga should beset Shiratorizawa without delay.

"Akaashi," Suga asked, "what do you make of the matter?" Koushi made a point of not calling his subordinates by rank; to him, even the lowest soldier was a friend, earning him the nickname, "the People's General."

"I think we should respond swiftly, sir. Delay means the enemy strikes first," the always proper Akaashi answered.

Yet the 1st Army's commander had the nagging feeling he was being played. His calls to HQ had gone unanswered; and with no cell phone towers this far out, Suga couldn't easily verify Kuroo's claims about Shiratorizawa without reconnoitering the town. There had been chatter of another Ushiwaka revolt, but a multi-thousand man army alongside a coup in the capital _and_ an assassination attempt? That was a little hard to believe for these stragglers. But it wasn't something he could wholly dismiss.

"Which division is closest to Shiratorizawa?" Suga asked his chief of staff.

"The 9th," answered Keiji. Suga frowned. Of all the officers in his command, if Suga were to peg one as a potential traitor, the dry Lieutenant-General Akira Kunimi who commanded the 9th Division, would be it.

But was he being paranoid? Suga asked himself. No. If anyone were to set up an elaborate ruse for Sugawara, it would be Kuroo. As commander-in-chief of the NRF, Kuroo had insisted Nekoma and Karasuno's forces attack Shiratorizawa from its easily approachable south. Suga feared high casualties so favored a longer trek through the mountains to ambush the town from the north. Unable to agree, the two generals led their armies on separate but simultaneous offensives. Kuroo's forces arrived first and were slaughtered by the well-entrenched defenders. Then with the element of surprise, Karasuno swooped in from the north, taking the town, killing Ushijima, and receiving the credit for the victory. Kuroo held an unexplainable grudge ever since.

Koushi chuckled. In case this was Kuroo's game, he would have to play it. The soldier on patrol reappeared outside the window and glanced at the general again. The man grinned slyly, pretending not to notice his commander in deep thought. Suddenly Suga got an idea. If all went as he predicted, he would beat Kuroo at his own game.

"Send Kunimi to Shiratorizawa," Koushi ordered, "for recon. Even if he finds something, he is not to attack without my orders." Akaashi saluted and strutted into the adjoining office. Quickly Suga shut the door and made a personal call on the landline. As he hung up, Keiji knocked and let himself in.

"Orders sent, sir," Akaashi announced.

"Good," replied Koushi. "Standby for now, Akaashi. I'm going for some fresh air."

* * *

Tadashi Yamaguchi checked his teal suit in the mirror, the dapper outfit almost making up for his unruly hair. Having led the KPF's media section in the war, Hinata chose Yamaguchi to head the Haikyu Broadcasting Corporation or HBC, the successor to the former state-run media. As executive director, the slim and unkempt businessman rarely took the public eye, but tonight Asahi tapped him to deliver the first official address to the people about the coup. It was going on 9:30, two hours since the disorder began.

Within minutes, Yamaguchi cautiously occupied the anchor's chair. He gulped as the cameras began rolling.

"People of Haikyu," Tadashi announced to watchers from both within and without the nation, "I am Tadashi Yamaguchi, president and CEO of HBC. I have been asked by our vice-president to address you about the threat facing our nation." He tilted the first page of a printout to read. "Friends and citizens, our nation is under attack by a force from within, cowards trying to undermine our peaceful democracy. These scoundrels have taken up arms to overthrow the legitimately elected administration and restore a state run by chaos, tyranny, and repression…."

It worried Yamaguchi that most of the press release consisted of hyperbole, evidence of how little Asahi and Daichi actually knew. He also fretted over the lack of mention of Hinata's condition. As he flipped to the second page, a production engineer tiptoed onto the set and whispered in Yamaguchi's ear, jolting the presenter. Tadashi smacked his lips as the producer stepped away.

"Folks, I have just been informed that soldiers have entered the building," he shuddered and reflected. "I-I don't know how much longer I'll be doing this." He tried reading more: "A-anyway, uh, we will valiantly fight this rebellion and root out all the traitors who seek to destroy what we have achieved. We—"

Off-screen, a squadron of machinegun- and rifle-armed soldiers kicked in the studio's door and fanned out across the space, taking crewmembers hostage as they went. Yamaguchi wanted to run, but very quickly he saw there was nowhere to go. And so he did the only thing he could do: he kept reading.

"We—w-will combat…these villains, and reaffirm—uh, _remain firm_ in defending the values of our nation…which make this country the greatest it has ever been—" Suddenly Yamaguchi balked, his eyes dilating like a frightened rabbit. From the left side of the screen entered a handgun-wielding military officer, the muzzle aimed at the broadcaster. Tadashi sidled out of the chair, trying to make no aggressive moves at all. And then the screen went black.

* * *

The takeover of HBC had netted two lucrative captures: the corporation's chief executive, Tadashi Yamaguchi, and Haikyu's Minister of Communications, Yuji Terushima. Among the cabinet of ministers, Terushima was the only one not a registered member of the Karasuno Party. After running a startup film company in the northern town of Johzenji, he won the low bid to film Hinata's campaign speeches, which endeared him to the carefree Hinata who recommended Terushima for the post of communications minister. With a wife and two children, the allure of a steady paycheck couldn't be resisted.

And now the entrepreneur sat with duct-taped wrists in a manager's office with 20 other employees. Terushima thought of his wife who must have seen the abrupt shutdown of the broadcast and probably feared the worst. Would she and the kids be all right? He thought he'd even kill one of his fellow captives if it would guarantee his family's safety.

Then entered the man who had forced Yamaguchi off the air: Lieutenant-General Hajime Iwaizumi, commander of the 2nd Army's 1st Division. With a terrifying glower and an easily sparked rage, Iwaizumi carried himself as the devil around the detainees. And to Terushima's dismay, Hajime seemed to be marching towards him.

"Yuji Terushima, right?" the officer posed.

"Y-y-yes," stuttered Terushima.

"Come," began Iwaizumi, "let's have a word."

* * *

Prime Minister Kageyama and his deputy Oikawa patiently waited in the living room where they had been socializing as the soldiers disarmed the Deputy PM's bodyguards and infiltrated the estate. Men of the 2nd Army's 5th Division finally trotted into the living room, semiautomatics aimed at the two politicians, followed presently by their commander, Lt.-Gen. Yutaro Kindaichi. Kindaichi's boots clicked together as he stood at attention before the two men who had once been his superiors in the Aoba Johsai Liberation Army.

"To what do we owe the displeasure, Yuta?" Oikawa inquired.

"It is my orders to keep you here," Kindaichi announced. Oikawa giddily threw up his arms.

"Oh, boy! Much better than a prison cell." He instinctively went for his wineglass then stopped upon realizing it was empty.

"So, what is the meaning of this, Yutaro?" Kageyama inquired.

"To save this country, and I wish you realized that," Kindaichi barked bitterly. Yutaro seemed to feel the most betrayal by Kageyama's defection to the Karasuno Party.

"How funny," Oikawa chimed. "We were just talking about that,"—Oikawa cast his gaze at the prime minister—"except you never gave me your answer," he teased, recalling his question about what Tobio would do if Hinata suddenly weren't in charge.

"Now is not the time," Kageyama spat.

"Well, Yutaro here thinks it is," he grinned and faced Kindaichi soppily. "So, if we join you, you'll let us go?"

"That depends," teased Yutaro. Kageyama grunted when his smartphone buzzed in his pocket. As he went to retrieve it, Kindaichi's men trained their weapons' sights on the PM, but Kindaichi shot out his arm as an order to hold fire. "Something important?" the officer growled.

Rather than reply, Kageyama fished out the phone and held it up nonchalantly as if to mockingly say he was innocent. His eyes widened as he read the text message from Tsukishima.

"So, you tried to kill Hinata?" he muttered.

"That may have been part of the plan," responded Kindaichi coyly.

"Too bad," Kageyama resumed, resting the cell phone in plain sight on the table. "He's alive and well."

Kindaichi snarled. Suddenly Oikawa jumped up vivaciously, startling them both. Kindaichi's men peered at the deputy prime minister but, not unnoticed by Kageyama, they kept their guns aimed at the far more docile Tobio.

"Alrighty then!" proclaimed Oikawa a little too joyously. "Plan B!" Toru waddled around the coffee table, slapped one hand on the glass beside Kageyama's phone, and leaned intimidatingly toward his boss's face. "Are you with us or not, Tobio?"

Tobio Kageyama took a moment to process the question before his body seethed with rage.

"You! You're behind this!"

Toru pulled back calmly, as if unfazed. "I wanted to go for the civil approach and win you over philosophically, then force your hand once Hinata was dead. But now that's out the window, and your stalling annoys me. So tell me, Tobio: are you in or are you out?"

"There's no way I'd work under you," grumbled Kageyama.

Oikawa pressed his palms to his heart melodramatically. "I'm hurt, Tobio! But you misunderstand me."

Kageyama grunted. "What's to misunderstand? That you're power-hungry?" Nobody particularly liked Toru, and he was felt by many in the Karasuno inner circle as one of the country's strongest potential threats. Appointing Oikawa as deputy prime minister was one way to keep the man under the watch of the elite, but it had the consequence of putting Toru third in the presidential line of succession, after Asahi and Kageyama.

Instead of a kneejerk response, though, Toru somberly sauntered to the window and gazed at the last glimmer of twilight on the horizon. "You really do have me wrong, Tobio. You see, despite what everyone says, I'm nobody special. I don't have unique talents or superior intellect, and I'm not charismatic and can't make people follow me. I can't be president, and it was foolish for me to even think that when I ran in your place." A skeptical Kageyama glared, as Toru spun and advanced towards Kageyama. "You see, there's only one person I believe that is qualified to run this country." He bent over in front of the prime minister to put their faces on the same height. "You."

Time seemed to stop momentarily. Kageyama tried to form a response, but his lips simply vibrated soundlessly. Tobio may have joined the Karasuno Party because of what he saw in Hinata, but his current admiration and superhuman patience concealed the PM's own presidential ambitions. Had Oikawa seen through that? And more importantly, was he even serious?

Oikawa wobbled back to his chair and plopped himself down with a cheeky grin. "No need to rush. Take your time. We've got plenty of it." He gazed at his watch, early in the carefully orchestrated coup. Had Hinata died, he calculated they would be in control by 9 p.m.; now he optimistically gave it until 10 p.m. Kageyama's cell phone rattled the coffee table with a call from Sawamura, but Tobio let it go to voicemail. As the minutes ticked by and Kindaichi's soldiers became less high-strung, Yutaro glanced back-and-forth between the silent pair. By his estimation, there was no chance Tobio would take the bait, so this was going to be a long wait.

And sure enough, Kageyama and Oikawa sat silently as the night and the coup progressed.


	5. Shooting Stars

**Cast rundown so far:**

Tokonami: Hinata (president), Yachi (his secretary), Tsukishima (foreign minister), Nishinoya (captain of the Presidential Guard)  
-Police: Hayato Ikejiri (police chief, captured by Yamamoto)  
-3rd Army: Ennoshita (commander); Yamamoto (commander, 12th Division); Kyotani (commander, 26th Regiment); Lev (part of 26th Regiment, deceased)

Yukigaoka City:  
-Loyalists not captured: Asahi (vice-president), Sawamura (Hinata's liaison with the cabinet), Tanaka (interior minister), Kenma (commander of the police forces), Kiyoko (youth and culture minister, in hiding somewhere), Yui Michimiya (?, not revealed yet)  
-Loyalists captured: Ukai (chief of staff of the Army), Kageyama (prime minister), Takeda (education minister), Terushima (communications minister), Shimada (agriculture minister, not mentioned yet), Takinoue (trade minister, not mentioned yet), Yamaguchi (president/CEO, Haikyu Broadcasting Corp.), and every other cabinet minister  
-Coup members: Oikawa (deputy prime minister); Kuroo (commander, 2nd Army); Iwaizumi (commander, 1st Division); Kindaichi (commander, 5th Division); Aone (commander, 11th Division); Bokuto (police chief)

Shiratorizawa area: Sugawara (commander, 1st Army), Akaashi (chief of staff, 1st Army), Kunimi (commander, 9th Division)

Others: Narita (commander, 4th Army, based on Kitagawan border north of Tokonami); Kinoshita (commander, 5th Army, based south of Sugawara); Nakashima (Kitagawa's ambassador to Haikyu, mentioned but has not appeared)

 **And on to Chapter 5...**

* * *

An eerie silence gripped the four occupants of Tanaka's office on Ministry Street. Many of the cabinet members had taken shelter at the Supreme Court, but soldiers of the 1st Division had overrun the building and used the courtroom as a makeshift detention center. Kageyama, Oikawa, and General Ukai weren't answering phone calls. Terushima had been at HBC when Yamaguchi's broadcast was silenced and was also thought a lost cause. Youth and Culture minister Kiyoko Shimizu was nowhere to be found by anyone. Daichi had tried to call Sugawara's landline out east, but it seemed the phone line had been cut somewhere.

And so the last four bastions of resistance in the capital—Vice-President Asahi Azumane, Presidential Cabinet Liaison Daichi Sawamura, Interior Minister Ryunosuke Tanaka, and Police Forces Commander Kenma Kozume—debated their options.

"So, we're in agreement, right?" Daichi clarified. "Kuroo and Bokuto are behind this, and we are the only ones left." Given all the evidence, it seemed the most probable conclusion.

"Seems that way," remarked Kenma. Thankfully nobody yet knew how much Kozume actually knew ahead of time of the mutiny.

"Then we have two options," Daichi announced, "find a redoubt of sorts to wait out the coup until Yukigaoka is liberated, or make a break for the countryside." He peered at the nervous VP. "Your move, Asahi."

Asahi gulped. Though at one time the favorite for Karasuno's presidential nomination, in reality, Asahi Azumane did not consider himself the leader type. All this time he had hoped Hinata would recover quickly so that the real president could give the orders and not Asahi. But alas, Azumane had accepted the intercession of party bosses who made him Hinata's running mate to spite Sawamura's endorsement of Shoyo, so now he had to accept the consequences.

As for the options, breaking for the suburbs was risky and unpredictable. They had no clue where the bulk of the coup's forces were or where Bokuto's goons had set up checkpoints. If they were to stay in Yukigaoka City, there was only one logical place to go.

"Let's go to the Bunker," Asahi announced. The other three jolted. The Bunker had been Ushiwaka's most impressive fortress, a citadel not far from Ministry Street built specifically for potential revolutions. It was a literal shell of its former self after incensed civilians overran the unsuspecting garrison, igniting the Haikyu Civil War. The rebels stripped clean every embrasure and armament, but the structure itself remained largely intact.

Tanaka propped his butt on the tip of his desk and folded his arms skeptically. "And how're we gonna get there?"

"Daichi," Asahi turned, "is the tunnel still usable?" Tanaka flinched, understanding Asahi's plan. Kenma cocked an eyebrow.

"You didn't know, did you, Kenma?" asked Tanaka.

"The rumors that Ushiwaka had a tunnel system to move between his favorite venues are true," elaborated Daichi, "but most of the entrances were blocked or destroyed by private citizens after the war who didn't want their past relationship with Ushiwaka known." Serendipitously the tunnel from Ministry Street to the Bunker had been spared such obstruction.

"You know where the entrance is, Tanaka?" asked Asahi.

"I helped conceal it when we moved in. I better."

"Right, let's get going." The four moved to depart when Daichi stopped to check his buzzing cell phone. He was getting a call, his eyes widening when he saw the ID.

"Wait up!" he bellowed as he answered the phone. "Terushima?"

"Sawamura! Thank goodness. Man, am I glad it's you," answered the communications minister. "Hey, uh, where are you guys?"

"We're moving out. What about you? How did you escape?"

"I stepped outside when the soldiers came in and, uh, you know, hid. So, uh, where can I meet you?"

Daichi wanted to advise the man to fend for himself—not out of rudeness but out of self-preservation in case Yuji were subsequently captured and tortured or were followed trying to make it to the Bunker. But, Daichi told himself, they needed all the help they could get at this point.

"We're going to the Bunker. Can you get there without being followed?"

"You're going to the Bunker? OK. Oh! Um, hey, uh, is Kenma with you?" Terushima added last-minute.

"Sure," answered Daichi curiously.

"Oh, he is? Cool. Yeah, so I'll try to get there. Gotta go." And the phone hung up.

* * *

In the courtyard of HBC's headquarters, a sweat-drenched Terushima panted before turning towards his hosts: Lt-Gen Hajime Iwaizumi and Yukigaoka City police chief Kotaro Bokuto.

"So, yeah, they're going to the Bunker. And Kenma _is_ with them. So now you'll leave my family alone, right?"

"We'll keep our end of the deal," confirmed Hajime. Oikawa had rightly speculated that Terushima would be more apt to betray Hinata since he wasn't a Karasuno Party member. Now that they knew where to find the rest of their targets, Iwaizumi ordered his men to shut down the cell towers in Yukigaoka City.

"So you don't need me anymore, right?" Terushima timidly inquired.

"Actually," interjected Bokuto raising a finger, "I may have one more use for you…." He snidely grinned.

* * *

As the entrance to the tunnel in the basement of the interior ministry was unsealed by loyalists from the presidential and cabinet security divisions, Sawamura made another proactive phone call.

"General Ennoshita," announced the commander of the 3rd Army in Tokonami on the other end of the phone. "That you, Daichi?"

"Chikara, I just wanted to check in. Have you heard from Hinata?"

"I know Nishinoya took the lead guarding the president, and that he killed the assassin. The local police are searching for accomplices, but I haven't—" and the line went dead.

"Hello? Hello?!" Sawamura cursed and hung up. He tried dialing again, but there was no signal. Sure enough, everyone's cell phones had lost connection—the coup plotters must have shut down the towers.

"Looks like we're truly blind now," Asahi lamented. Sawamura grunted as their bodyguards appeared and announced the tunnel had been inspected and was clear. As the others prepared to make their way into the passageway leading to the Bunker, Daichi gulped. Somehow—he didn't know why—he felt this would be the end.

* * *

"Hello? Hello?" repeated Ennoshita into his desk phone before it slammed on the receiver. He was about to dial Sawamura back when his intercom announced the tardy arrival of Lt-Gen Taketora Yamamoto. After being granted access, Yamamoto stridently flung the door open and stomped into the 3rd Army commander's office.

"'Bout time, General," grumbled Ennoshita, "but doesn't matter now. Listen, I want you to leave a regiment to garrison the airfield against sabotage." It was a logical step since the adjacent Chidoriyama Airfield had an excess of missiles previously scheduled for decommission per the Kitagawa arms deal. Ennoshita flinched, however, when Yamamoto's handgun appeared aimed at the commander.

"I'm afraid that won't be happening, bruh," grunted Yamamoto. "You're being relieved of command."

* * *

Presidential Guard captain Yuu Nishinoya returned to Hinata's hotel room to find a somber air. Hinata was drinking from a cup unnecessarily supported by Yachi while Kei jumped out of his chair dying for word on the president's assailant.

"He's dead," Nishinoya blurted before Tsukishima could say anything. Yachi set the cup down as Hinata's face sank. "Shoyo, what's wrong?" Yuu pointedly interrogated.

Hinata faintly smiled then croaked that he was fine. Noya, always one to disregard decorum when it came to his ward, marched over to Shoyo's bedside.

"No, you're not. You're acting like a pussy!"

"Hey!" rebuked Tsukishima. Hinata gawped at first before sulking.

"Takes one to know one," he grumbled.

"What was that?!" Noya was ready to throw a punch when Kei grappled his arm.

"Nishinoya, the assailant's dead! What else?" the foreign minister repeated to refocus the captain.

"The local police are looking into it. He was a soldier. For now, Kei, I've got a hunch, and I want to follow up in case we need to get Hinata out in a hurry." He beckoned the foreign minister to come with him. Tsukishima promised the president they would return shortly before both vanished. Feeling alone, Hinata longed for the chance to jab at Nishinoya again, since he was far more fun to joke with than Tsukishima. He brooded, momentarily forgetting Yachi's presence beside him. Shoyo spotted his secretary gazing at him fretfully.

"Hey, I mean it," Hinata meekly pleaded, "I'm just fine."

Yachi blushed and sank into the chair beside the bed.

"You're worried," she muttered, making Hinata stop. Then she panicked thinking she had just told off the President of Haikyu. "Um, I didn't mean anything by it! I mean, you're just busy and…stressed…is all!"

"Thanks, Yachi," murmured Shoyo. He bore a smile more genuine than any Hitoka had seen that night. "You're right. I'm not cut out for this."

"Maybe," Yachi mulled, not really understanding what Hinata meant, "but that's why we like you."

Hinata peered quizzically. Again, Yachi became flustered.

"B-but…I just mean…you're different!" she exclaimed. You…you're not like all those other guys, like Sawamura or Asahi or Kageyama. Not that they're bad! It's just, you're…different. You're…kind…and soft…and, uh—" She felt dizzy trying to choose her words carefully and failing miserably, convinced she was making little sense. Rather Hinata simply enrapt, consumed by the fact that despite the never-ending criticism from politicians and militarists, someone seemed to have a pure and absolute faith in him. "I'm making a fool of myself," Yachi finally complained aloud.

"No!" contested Hinata, darting a hand towards her as if to touch and comfort her. He balked with the sting in his shoulder and the impropriety of the situation. "Uh, I mean, you're right…I think."

Yachi gazed wide-eyed before chuckling cutely. "You're so honest. That's why you're a good president," she beamed dopily. Hinata gaped at her dumbfounded.

"Because I'm honest?" he timidly inquired.

"Because you have these big ideas!" chimed Yachi. "And you're not like the others, and you want what's best for the country." Suddenly her importunity in speaking so casually with the nation's leader struck her, and she shrank into a shell of angst, apologizing profusely. Hinata barked at her to be quiet before finally mumbling:

"Thanks."

Yachi froze. She peered up at the man, finding on his face a wide grin as he gazed into his palms introspectively. Shoyo had forgotten that the people were not simply whimsical voters. He after all was once an ordinary citizen, and he had tried to make sure even when he was blogging that he never spoke down to his readers. It wasn't just Sawamura and Kageyama who claimed to have faith in Shoyo. It was the entire electorate that chose him and still trusted him. He had to fight, for their sake, for the sake of the country, by finding those behind this chaos, whoever they were. Hinata dug his fingertips into his palms, his fists shaking proudly.

"Everyone is trusting me to lead this nation," he grinned, "and that's why I will!" Yachi beamed with delight at the sight of her boss's raw, fickle energy once again back. Hinata felt around the bed for his smartphone before realizing Kei had placed it on the end table. Yachi trotted to grab it, and Shoyo eagerly dialed Sawamura.

"Let's put a stop to these guys!" he proclaimed as he put the phone to his ear. The device delivered a busy signal, confounding Shoyo. He tried Asahi and also could not get through. And Kageyama. He couldn't even get the phone to ring. Nishinoya and Tsukishima strode in moments later, spotting Hinata hunched over his cell phone's display.

"Nobody's answering," he ominously conveyed. Nishinoya marched over and snatched the phone. It still had mobile signal, so it was possible the towers around Yukigaoka City had simply been shut down. That was the best case scenario. Maybe they still had data and could reach everyone with a messaging app, he pondered. First things first, however. Yuu returned Shoyo's phone and retrieved his own device, calling up General Ennoshita. He had to report their discovery.

Nobody spoke as the receiver picked up. "Hey, Chikara!" Nishinoya began. "Listen. I—"

"That you, Libero?!" a deep, crackling voice interrupted ecstatically, clearly not Ennoshita's vocals. Nishinoya paused as the speaker chortled. "This one's for Lev." The dial tone resounded.

Tsukishima, Yachi, and Hinata gawked at the uncharacteristically hushed Noya. "This one's for Lev"? What did that mean? Suddenly a dire thought struck him. Nishinoya sprinted out onto the balcony, almost knocking his subordinate on guard duty over the railing. Noya scanned the faint, blinking stars in the cloudless night sky before sighting two brighter celestial objects to the southeast. And they were moving….

"Get out!" he screamed. "They've got rockets!" Panic ensued immediately. Kei dragged Hinata out from under the covers, but from there the president could run on his two feet. "Do as we planned, Kei!" Noya directed before issuing an evacuation order via radio. Kei led Hinata and Yachi to the fire escape at Mach speed, while Nishinoya splintered another direction to assist his men in withdrawing. Reaching the ground floor, Hinata darted towards the main entrance when Kei clasped the president's bicep and tugged him the opposite direction.

"This way!" he screeched. Yachi vacillated over which direction to go before finally pursuing her boss.

Seconds later, the first missile slammed through the Black Crow's façade, obliterating the third floor and piercing down to the basement. The second missile cut through the seventh floor, gutting whatever structural support remained. The building fragmented and crumbled into a field of rubble. A few miles away, the first and then the second shockwave made Taketora Yamamoto, rocking in Ennoshita's office chair, beam sadistically.

Presidential Guardsmen and restless citizens scraped through the horrendous stack of debris, rescuing a few survivors but mostly recovering the bodies of Nishinoya's men. And as cell phone video of the impact and aftermath quickly found its way to the internet, Shoyo Hinata was yet to be found.


	6. The Bunker Falls

**Thank you for sticking through to the chapter I most looked forward to writing.**

* * *

Yuji Terushima paced outside the Bunker's exterior wall, his skin bubbling with sweat despite the nippiness of the night. After all, what he was about to do was treason at the highest level, eradicating the last resisters of the coup. He tried rationalizing, but his stomach writhed nonetheless. At last one side of the citadel's perimeter gate whined open. Ryunosuke Tanaka nosily poked his head out before spotting Terushima and flagging him quickly.

Presidential guardsmen and a few loyalist police officers had been deployed around the monstrous fortress, an ugly remnant of what it once was. Terushima followed Tanaka into the drab and water-soiled compound and followed a spiral staircase to a second-floor hall. There, the fugitives patiently waited Tanaka and Yuji. The communications minister particularly noted Kenma Kozume among the group, the man he was directed to find.

"Thank goodness you made it," Daichi sighed.

"So, this is it?" Terushima mumbled, regarding the huddle. Besides Tanaka and Kenma, the corridor hosted Daichi and Vice-President Azumane.

"Fraid so," answered Asahi, "but Hinata will intervene once he's able." He didn't mention neither he nor Daichi had heard from Hinata lately. Data signal seemed to have been spared the cell shutdown, so they had resorted to private messenger apps to communicate. But Hinata—for all his love of social media—wasn't answering.

Suddenly Kenma felt his phone vibrate. He opened his own messaging app to find a hyperlink and accompanying message. A video screeched within the concrete hallway when he pressed the link, the others huddling around the phone display.

It was cell phone video of a demolished building. People clawed through a pyramidal mound of rubble as women wailed and police officers shouted orders in the background. The amateur cameraman jostled the smartphone from place to place, mumbling astonished gibberish until stumbling and zooming on a mangled placard on the ground. Arrows that once pointed out a hotel lobby, elevators, and restrooms were meaningless now. And as he zoomed closer on the creased plastic, the placard's trademark became disturbingly legible:

"Black Crow Hotel."

Kenma pressed the phone to his chest as the stream ended. Tanaka crumbled backward, supporting himself against the wall. The Black Crow had been destroyed, almost certainly by the rebels. Ryu and Kozume awaited some optimistic counterpoint from Asahi or Daichi that Hinata had moved to a different location. But they were depressively silent.

"Well," Asahi finally choked incompletely.

"Whatever your orders," Daichi solemnly finished. Asahi was Haikyu's constitutional leader now. Their next course of action for the nation was his to make. It was too late to flee the city though. Their options were extremely thin. Daichi mentioned that Sugawara might be able to liberate the city— _if_ they could stall that long.

"Daichi, we need to talk," stated Asahi. "Everyone else, consider what you will do next." He stiffly marched down the hall. Sawamura gave chase frantically, unwilling to surrender just yet. Once Daichi and Asahi were out of earshot, Tanaka's eyes and nostrils moistened, and he flung a fist into the cement.

"I'll kill every last one of them," he muttered before his eyes turned on Kenma. "You with me?"

Kenma, the phone still pressed to his uniform, shuddered then nodded silently, not actually understanding what Tanaka was talking about. Instead, though, Ryu retreated past Kenma and to a room at the end of the hall—already abandoning his vengeful resolution.

Kozume remained, shivering violently, in the corridor as his throat heaved. His eyes dampened, much to his surprise. His forehead hit the wall meekly, his cap slipping to the floor and exposing black roots he hadn't bothered to dye. This was all his fault, he thought. He didn't dare look at his phone again, to avoid rereading the video's sender's message. Beneath the hyperlink, Kenma could hear Kotaro Bokuto's serpentine vocals:

 _You're on our side now, right? :)_

"So, um…"

Kenma jolted when Terushima's words suddenly reminded him of the comm minister's presence. Yuji appeared depressed but not emotionally distraught. He gulped, seeing Kenma's confounded, watery eyes gazing at him.

"Well, this really isn't a good time, but…"

* * *

"Soldiers are amassed in the center of Shiratorizawa," Akaashi authoritatively declared reading from Kunimi's reconnaissance dispatch. "Armed guards man the perimeter, and the police station appears to have been burned." General Koushi Sugawara couldn't believe his ears and sort of wished his chief of staff sugarcoated stuff more. "Your orders, sir?" Akaashi beckoned.

Suga planted his thumb on his temples, his interlocked fingers against his forehead, trying to process the situation. It was after 10PM, and the farfetched possibility this were some grandiose ruse still swirled in his mind. Kuroo and Kunimi were trying to distract him. Or Suga was being paranoid. No, it still seemed far too unlikely Ushiwaka upstarts could launch a coup d'état as far reaching as this one. And if Shiratorizawa were filled with peacefully snoozing women and children, bombarding the city would be the greatest crime against humanity since Ushijima's ouster. Suga needed more time, more information. Please, God, let Kinoshita call.

And suddenly his phone rang. Suga rapidly ripped it off the receiver, only afterward bothering to check the caller ID.

"Tell me," he commanded into the device. Akaashi cocked an eyebrow. The line out west had been cut, so who would have a direct line to Suga? Suga cursed, astonishing Keiji. "OK, we've got a huge problem," the general mumbled. "Have your division nearest Shiratorizawa contact Kunimi under the guise of coordinating an assault and meet him somewhere to detain him and find out more. If he doesn't take the bait, I trust your judgment. Send the rest of the bulk of your army to Yukigaoka. I'll call back shortly." Sugawara rested the phone on the hook. A befuddled Akaashi gazed at his boss breathing a deep sigh of relief.

"You're arresting Kunimi?"

"I asked Kinoshita to do a flyover and verify Kunimi's report. It's a bunch of bull," he muttered as he bent his neck over his seatback, his eyes shutting in relief. "There's no enemy force at Shiratorizawa. Kuroo and Kunimi—they both lied." Kinoshita's 5th Army could handle Kunimi, Suga figured, but it would take a few hours to get a sizable force to Yukigaoka City and even longer for Kinoshita. They had to move out quickly and hopefully without detection.

"I honestly thought Kuroo was too paranoid about you," Akaashi's dry voice sounded oddly. Suga leaned his head up to find his chief of staff's handgun aimed right at him. "For some reason, he _insisted_ on sacrificing all those innocents just to ruin your reputation." Koushi gawked as his chief of staff methodically removed the 1st Army commander's armament from its waist holster, ushered the general to another chair where Keiji could watch him more easily, and shut the blinds of the office. Akaashi shut the door to the adjoining room where the bungalow's main entrance was then plopped in a chair opposite his boss.

"I considered you might be in on this too," Suga conceded, "but that was one possibility I really didn't want to believe." Akaashi stared, wholly disinterested. "So, now what?" Suga asked.

"We wait, until Kuroo and the rest of those buggers in the capital finish whatever they're doing."

* * *

The second floor of the Bunker hosted a number of bombproof rooms, though the iron blast doors had been sheared off by looters. Each of the VIPs selected one room as a personal safe house, and Tanaka, sprawled on the rough concrete floor, found the job of counting pockmarks in the ceiling rather enthralling as a distraction. He scooched onto his side and began contemplating the next few hours, if his freedom even lasted that long. It didn't really feel like "freedom" at this point.

"Uh, Tanaka, can you follow me?" Kenma's jittery voice chattered from the rectangular arch where the door had once been. Tanaka moaned as he forced himself up.

"What is it?"

"Downstairs, sir." Ryu trailed Kenma down the staircase through the claustrophobic ground floor hall. Suddenly Kenma stopped beside a doorway, his shoulders slouching—very much unlike his normal forced posture in Tanaka's presence. Just as Ryu noticed his comrade's apparent anxiety, police officers from the capital police swept out from a room behind him and thrust Tanaka to the ground.

"Kenma! What the heck?!" he squealed. He struggled until the click of handcuffs made further resistance futile. Through the threshold beside Kenma, Tanaka could see Terushima discreetly peering at the interior minister's detainment before Kotaro Bokuto glided into the space and stood akimbo between Kenma and Ryu. The city's police chief slow-clapped as he grinned victoriously.

"Hey, hey, hey! Well done, Kenma!" he bellowed.

"Bokuto won't harm anyone," Kenma shyly rebutted as Tanaka gazed in shock. "Shoyo's dead, so…it's better no one else dies." Suddenly Bokuto's faux clapping ceased. He snaked his head backward to peer at Kenma.

"Wait. Did I say I wouldn't hurt anyone?"

"That's what you told me," Terushima asserted meekly. As if on cue, semiautomatic gunfire echoed from within the Bunker's walls.

"I thought you changed sides 'cause you loved me!" Bokuto sadistically screeched.

"Call them off!" Kenma commanded as gunfights erupted all around. Bokuto brandished his handgun at Tanaka and chuckled. "Listen, I'm now minister of the interior, so I give _you_ orders, hey, hey! And my orders are, take me to Asahi or Ryu here gets a Swiss-cheese brain! Got me?"

* * *

Daichi gawped at his smartphone. Was this for real? He had no time to think about a reply to the unexpected chat message when the irrefutable sound of gunfire engulfed the citadel's interior. Shoving the phone in his back pocket, Sawamura ventured into the hall where two soldiers of the 2nd Army's 1st Division spotted and detained him. Their commander, Hajime Iwaizumi, mounted the steps at the end of the hall moments later.

"Sawamura? I hope next time you'll endorse Oikawa for president instead," he jabbed. "Come, I'll give you a treat." He gestured Sawamura's captors to escort their charge down the hall toward the room where Asahi was hiding. It had a hollow compartment in the floor into which the VP should have dived into the moment gunfire exploded. But, to Daichi's shock, a squad of police officers invaded the room, Bokuto and Kenma at their lead. Asahi trembled silently as the slab of concrete over his head levitated up and aside, exposing the Vice-President to prying torchlights and Bokuto's fiendish smirk.

"So here's the VP! Or Acting P, I suppose," Bokuto joked. Kotaro's men hoisted Asahi out by the armpits and disarmed his concealed handgun.

"I hope this was worth it," Asahi retorted. It was over. The dream of a free Haikyu. Hinata's dream, the nation's dream. Bokuto smiled sleazily.

"Yes, it was! To depose idiots like Hinata and my old boss!" he cried. "But, say, who do you suppose gets to take Hinata's place?"

"You?" Asahi sarcastically answered. Bokuto chortled glibly.

"No! Actually, the presidency will be handed just as the constitution said," he teased. The constitution specified the line of succession in event of the president's incapacitation: the vice-president, then the prime minister, the deputy prime minister, and so on.

"It can't be Kageyama, so who?" Asahi predicated. Bokuto snickered.

"Why _can't_ it be Kageyama?"

Asahi, Sawamura, and even Kenma, sunk in self-pity against the wall beside the door, tuned in to Kotaro's claim. Was Kageyama really behind this? Bokuto spun around to engage his enrapt audience, demonstratively raising his arms.

"Well, you'll see, won't you?!" he giddily teased. And then he spun back to Asahi and drew his gun. "…But you, sir, won't." Kenma darted forward to stop Bokuto, but his objection was quickly drowned out by the boom of Kotaro's gun. Asahi stumbled down without fanfare, as respectable in death as in life, but even so Kotaro exhausted the rest of his clip into the Vice-President's body with a maniacal grin. Eyes watering, Daichi seethed with barely containable rage.

"Iwaizumi, you've got the rest," chimed Bokuto before guiding his troops away. Last of all, Kenma departed the room, which pooled with Azumane's blood. His eyes began to tear up until he noticed the agonizingly spiteful glare of Daichi Sawamura. Kozume recomposed himself, suddenly feeling that he of all people had no right to mourn the coup plotters' actions.

Before hustling away, Lt.-Gen. Iwaizumi ordered the two men guarding Daichi to finish searching the upper floors and regroup downstairs. As the men got to work, Daichi contemplated the tragedy around him and the one part of it that didn't make sense. If Tobio Kageyama were the mastermind of this bloodshed, why had Iwaizumi, indisputably the most fanatical advocate of Toru Oikawa, advised Daichi to endorse Oikawa for president? He had to know the truth, Daichi thought, as he glared at the steadily marching officer's back.

"I'm surprised Oikawa would acquiesce to Kageyama's presidency," he snorted. Hajime halted.

"Sawamura, do you think the people will follow Kageyama?"

"The man who killed Shoyo will never earn the respect of the people." Iwaizumi peered over his shoulder, firmly glaring at Sawamura.

"Exactly," he replied simply. "That answer your question?" He resumed marching toward the staircase without further ado.

Daichi gazed confused. That didn't answer Daichi's question at all. Was Iwaizumi hoping Kageyama's disrepute before the people would give Oikawa a fighting chance at next year's election?

Or perhaps, the thought occurred to him, Kageyama was merely going to take the _fall_ for Hinata's death. And if Bokuto were right that the mutineers intended to abide by the constitutional line of succession, that meant only one thing.

Sawamura glanced at his two guards. One of them wandered down the hall peering in different rooms for stragglers. The other man held Sawamura's arm unmindfully, almost bored at how quickly they subdued the garrison. Exploiting their lack of forethought in searching Daichi for weaponry, Sawamura reached into his suit jacket and whipped out a pistol, lodging a bullet into the one guard's shoulder. The soldier stumbled as Daichi sprinted toward an alcove and up a ladder to the Bunker's roof. He had to buy time. He had to get this information out immediately to someone who could use it—for Kageyama's sake, for the nation's sake.

He had to reply to that message on his phone.

Throwing up the hatch on the rooftop ramparts of the Bunker, Daichi dug out his cell and reopened the chat. No time to type. He began recording a voice message: "Oikawa's behind the coup! They've killed Asahi. They're going to frame Kageyama. They've captured HQ, and the cabinet. Yukigaoka has fallen. Please—" He shrieked hoarsely as a bullet pierced the back of his calf, toppling him. Before finishing the recording and hitting send, Daichi mumbled one last plea into the cell phone's mic: "Please, save Haikyu."

"Who'd you send that too?" queried a demure Hajime as he sauntered up to Sawamura, handgun drawn. Daichi ignored him as he carefully aimed his own pistol, tucked beneath his chest out of sight, at the smartphone and obliterated the small device with one more shot. A second round of lead simultaneously punctured Daichi's lung. Daichi reeled and collapsed facedown, his mouth ejecting a foamy mix of drool and blood.

"It doesn't matter," Iwaizumi derogated. "Oikawa _will_ be president. Nothing and nobody will change that."

Heaving painfully, Sawamura rolled onto his side to behold his assailant. Iwaizumi's eternally stoic visage gazed back before another bullet fractured Sawamura's skull and shortly faded Daichi's vision to black.

* * *

 **And so it ends...**


	7. The Shadow Subsists

**A shorter chapter this time.**

* * *

Toru Oikawa whisked the tip of his index finger around the wineglass's rim. It sat empty beside the one he had consumed earlier. As the clock in Oikawa's living room labored past 10:30, Kageyama couldn't believe how quickly his three hours of captivity went. He and Toru engaged in small talk in between Oikawa taking phone calls and eventually typing text messages as he directed the minutest details of the rebellion. Kageyama's phone had been commandeered by Toru, who teased Kageyama about every missed calls or SMS inquiring of his whereabouts. Oikawa had also gleefully shared the video of the Black Crow's wreckage with Kageyama after it surfaced online.

Since proclaiming his intent to elevate Prime Minister Tobio Kageyama to the presidency, the duo had been otherwise alone save for Kindaichi, who waited in anticipation in a third armchair, bored to pieces. Until Tobio explicitly agreed or disagreed to ally with Toru, the three of them would stay there ad infinitum.

Though he hadn't said so, Kageyama had already made his choice. According to Oikawa, if Kageyama became president, Oikawa would both be Vice-President—an obvious threat he would be watching Kageyama every second—and Prime Minister, leaving the cabinet effectively under Toru's control. If Kageyama refused, then Oikawa would appoint someone less desirable but just as qualified to lead the nation instead. What that meant was the titular head of state would be Oikawa's puppet whoever it may be. Kageyama didn't buy Toru's selflessness one bit. The man wanted power and was the very epitome of the kind of person who should not have power. If Tobio had to make a choice, being president in name only was the only way to keep the ravenous Toru in check.

And he dearly hoped he didn't have to make that choice. More important, he dearly hoped Hinata had not been at the Black Crow when it ostensibly exploded.

Finally the clock neared 11p.m., at which time his dream of stalling until the coup was quashed ended. Oikawa peered at a message on his cell phone and beamed.

"Well, Mr. President," Toru teased, "what do you say?" Oikawa handed off his cell for Kageyama to read Iwaizumi's message: "Bunker secure. VP dead. Sawa too." Tobio broiled with rage and hurled the cell across the room.

"That wasn't very presidential of you," Toru censured. "But you see now? The people of Haikyu need a new leader, a better leader, one who can inspire true confidence." Kageyama rejected the insinuation Hinata didn't inspire "true confidence," but it was a lost cause now. Between the mentally battling pair, Kindaichi hooked his fingers, tensely awaiting Tobio's decision.

"You know I won't let you have your way," Kageyama grumbled.

"I don't expect you to let me have my way," Oikawa kidded, "but this isn't about me, remember? So, this means you're accepting my offer?"

Kindaichi's eyes widened as if shocked, but Tobio didn't answer.

"You will pay for this," he insisted instead. Toru grinned. It was obvious Tobio was skeptical of Oikawa's feigned altruism, but it wouldn't change things. After taking the blame for Hinata's murder, the populace would never accept President Kageyama. He would be the most sinister villain in their eyes since the fall of Ushiwaka. In that climate, all Toru had to do was lead the charge to "overthrow" the "tyrant" and heroically avenge Shoyo. Toru hadn't decided if he'd subject Kageyama to a show trial followed by execution (after reinstating the death penalty repealed by Hinata, of course) or if Tobio would be a mortal casualty in Toru's planned "countercoup." Either way, Kageyama's cooperation made the outcome certain. Toru Oikawa had already won. Now to ready the interim president to face the people—and the grim reaper.

"First, Tobio," apprised Toru as he ushered Kageyama out of the living room, "you must get some sleep and shower to wake up bright and early. Your debut to the nation will be 6 a.m. sharp!" As Toru shuffled Tobio away, neither of them noticed Kindaichi's spiteful glare aimed at Kageyama.

* * *

After being taken hostage by his chief of staff, Koushi Sugawara prodded Akaashi for information about the coup. Given that Sugawara couldn't do anything with the intel, Keiji obliged: sure enough, Kuroo had taken over headquarters, and Kunimi's recon reports were fallacious. Akaashi had arranged for the landline to Yukigaoka City to be cut. By now, he predicted all of Yukigaoka City should have been subdued—with military contingents sent to HBC, Ministry Street, and the Supreme Court where likely many cabinet members had taken shelter. The police—courtesy of Akaashi's old comrade Bokuto—would be tightly controlling movement within the city and arresting any stragglers. Even if Hinata had survived the initial sniper attack, as the rumors were, they had forces in Tokonami too entrusted with Shoyo's liquidation.

During a lull, Keiji wired a dispatch to Kuroo informing him of Sugawara's pacification and the inconvenient fact that Hisashi Kinoshita's 5th Army was on his way to arrest Kunimi and potentially could march on the capital. Akaashi figured it didn't matter though; Kunimi was expendable, and going after him instead of the brunt of the coup in Yukigaoka would simply prolong the inevitable. The chief of staff returned to his chair to keep Suga under watch. The general made no attempt to escape, though he was remarkably interested in the blinds that Akaashi had closed when he was taken prisoner.

Suddenly in the adjoining office, the main entrance to the bungalow burst open. Akaashi leapt from his chair only to find himself quickly in the scope of several assault rifles. Colonel Akiteru Tsukishima, the camp's commander of the guards, ordered the subjugation of Akaashi. Suga only smiled, winking at the colonel who was the foreign minister's lesser-known older brother.

"Just so you're aware, Akaashi," Suga pronounced as he sauntered to the window and reopened the blinds, "I like to see my men at their work, which is why I never shut my blinds. Remember when I stepped out to get a breather? I was actually advising Akki and some of the sentries that, if my windows were obscured at any time tonight, assume the worst and storm the office."

Keiji snarled. "You knew this would happen?"

"I didn't want to believe it, but I had to account for even that possibility."

"No wonder Kuroo is so obsessed with you," Keiji remarked. Actually, it didn't explain Tetsuro's peculiar obsession with Suga one bit. It was almost as if the man were out for revenge.

Just as the squad readied to transport Akaashi to the camp jail, a dispatch arrived in the office. Suga ripped it from the machine. After a brief congratulation, it ended with a coded memo: "The sun has fallen. Tomorrow fails. The shadow subsists."

"What does this mean, Akaashi?" Sugawara interrogated after reciting the phrase aloud. Akaashi only smirked.

"It means, General, you're guilty of mutiny."

"Akaashi!" Suga ordered irately.

"Hinata and Asahi are dead. The coup has won," Keiji pronounced bluntly. Suga gaped. He ordered Akaashi removed and questioned further. Only Akiteru remained in the room, at Suga's request.

"Akki, I'm heading to Yukigaoka with a full force," he pronounced. "Whether Akaashi is lying or otherwise, Kuroo and these traitors must be crushed. You coming?"

"Yes, sir!" Akiteru affirmed. After all, the older Tsukishima wished to know his brother's welfare too, given his proximity to Hinata.

Little did they realize Akaashi only told them part of the story. "The shadow subsists"—Keiji pondered that final statement. It appeared to mean Tobio Kageyama was not only alive but poised to become Haikyu's new leader. Akaashi didn't know who was directing the coup above Kuroo—few of the conspirators did—but he found it almost laughable to think Kageyama of all people was the one liberating the nation from Hinata's stupidity.

* * *

The lorry carrying Suga, Akiteru, and a band of soldiers jostled over the last pass from the eastern mountains onto the plains leading to Yukigaoka City. It would take a few more hours for the bulk of Suga's two divisions to reach the capital, though an advance force could probably get there sooner. Jiggling inside the truck's bay, Koushi found it difficult to read his cell phone display. Any minute now they should be within range of the nearest cell phone tower, and then perhaps he could get some real intelligence.

Finally Suga's phone rumbled as the signal came to life. Besides the slew of missed calls, voicemails, and text messages, notifications from messaging apps suggested for a time the cell towers in Yukigaoka had been shut down. Skimming the list of senders, one communicator made him pause. He opened the message sent less than an hour ago, scanning its contents several times to ensure he fully understood. He disembarked from the truck momentarily to get some privacy as he tried to call the sender.

The cell phone picked up after barely one ring. "Suga! Can you hear me?"

Koushi sniffled.

"Shoyo, thank goodness…."

* * *

 **And so it resumes...**


	8. 06:00 Hours

**A cast rundown has been added to Chapter 5 for reference. And now, morning rises on a new nation...**

* * *

Shielded from the imminent dawn by heavy drapes, Kageyama's heart pounded painfully. In the expansive foyer of the late Shoyo Hinata's office, a hastily organized film crew made finishing touches to a video setup. Oikawa micromanaged every aspect of the scene, communicating his predilections through a haggard Terushima. Iwaizumi acted as a stand-in for lighting purposes in the center of a semicircular couch that Hinata once loved to sprawl out on after parliamentary grillings. In a corner, Kotaro Bokuto lamented the inability of his subordinates to locate Kiyoko Shimizu, the last fugitive cabinet member; while an insular Kenma beside him gazed somberly at the hustle. Kageyama, in a sparkling, jet black suit, waited out the hubbub glancing at a wall-mounted LCD that would run a live feed of the forthcoming transmission.

Soon Terushima ordered everyone into position; it was almost time as the sun rose on Yukigaoka City. At 6 the cameras would start rolling, and Kageyama would then proclaim himself the murderer of Shoyo Hinata. Kageyama's heart beat ever more violently, as if the organ were warning its host to run. There was nowhere to go though. His minder Kindaichi stood off his right; anything Tobio did Yutaro was there for, per Oikawa's command.

Now Yuji occupied the couch where Iwaizumi once sat, tapped by Oikawa at the last second to deliver an introduction for the new president. At 6 a.m. sharp, the camera's light blinked to say it was recording. Yuji darted his eyes to cue cards as the flat-screen lit up with his pale face. The same image was being transmitted to every television on every station in Haikyu, thanks to some technical magic at the Haikyu Broadcasting Corporation studio.

"P-people of Haikyu," Terushima stammered. Kageyama's stomach churned. Only a matter of seconds.

"I can't believe you're doing this," a voice behind him murmured. Above Tobio, Kindaichi wore a judgmental frown. Kageyama gawked at him, prompting Kindaichi to look away. What the heck was that supposed to mean?

Tobio couldn't ponder the remark further when Oikawa signaled him into position. Once Yuji announced the country's "savior," the comm minister would sidle off-screen, and Kageyama would take his place.

"And n-now, the true liberator of Haikyu," Terushima concluded. He silently tiptoed away, deathly afraid he would trip over himself. Oikawa shut his eyes in humiliation, thankful the unpolished performance was over. When he opened his eyes again, he still pouted, noticing Kageyama had ignored his cue to occupy the couch.

 _I can't believe you're doing this_ , Kindaichi's words echoed in his skull. If Tobio didn't know any better, it almost sounded as if Kindaichi had hoped Kageyama _wouldn't_ go along with Toru. Even though Tobio had reasoned this was the only way to stop Oikawa, he couldn't kick the doubt Yutaro just planted. Leaving an awkward vacancy on the couch, Tobio turned to Toru.

"What are you really after?" he interrogated.

Iwaizumi drew his pistol on instinct, but Toru raised a hand to stay his most loyal devotee.

"What does it matter now?" he whispered with a suave smirk. Tobio glared.

Oikawa was right, Kageyama thought. Hinata, Asahi, and Sawamura were dead, and Sugawara had been stifled by Kuroo. What _did_ it matter now?

Kageyama sat down before the camera, eyes shut, face perspiring, his conscience miserably assailed by his own actions. Perhaps, Tobio even fleeted, he was complicit in killing Hinata. He parted his eyelids and gazed into the lens broadcasting his face to thousands everywhere.

Except it wasn't.

"Shoyo!"

Kenma's frenzied cry upended everyone. The police commander was gawking at the flat screen, and in short order a wave of varying emotions overcame each of the foyer's occupants.

Instead of Kageyama, the screen depicted a podium in a sleek convention hall at which stood the unmistakable if uncharacteristically severe presence of Shoyo Hinata. Before long, Terushima's tech crew realized the foyer's broadcast had been forcibly suppressed just a few seconds before Kageyama took his seat. Oikawa snatched the remote and unmuted the television, letting Shoyo's words into the room.

"Forgive me for my silence for so long," Hinata proffered sincerely. "The villains who have destroyed our democratic process think they've won, but I've waited until this moment solely to remind these traitors that they have not won. _I_ am alive."

"Where is this coming from?!" Oikawa screeched hysterically.

Terushima tried to trace the source of the service interruption while Iwa unsuccessfully attempted to contact his squad that was guarding HBC. Bokuto quietly relished in the humor of the whole situation while Kenma and Kageyama harbored feelings of dread mixed with relief.

Was this even possible?

"…To all the people of Haikyu who want a free and bright land," Hinata continued, "show these scoundrels that I am not the only one fighting for that dream. Show them that to quash freedom in this country, they must quash the very people who inhabit it, run it, and own it! Show them that you are not afraid to resist these demons, and I promise I will stand before you in person in due time. Before I go to begin preparing my return to Yukigaoka City,"—Shoyo's eyes seemed to pinpoint Toru Oikawa through the TV—"to those behind this heinous plot, you will be found, outed, and punished as is fit."

Kageyama moved to applaud and narrowly restrained the impulse. It was the best speech Hinata ever gave and almost certainly not one the youthful lad wrote. Tobio couldn't wait to find out who this ghost writer was and thank him.

Another round of shock filled the room, however, when Hinata's face vanished from the screen, replaced instantly by Yamaguchi's in the HBC newsroom, pleasantly beaming.

"And that was brought to you live from our president from an undisclosed location for his safety. Thank you for your patience through the uncertainty of the night, but rest assured, HBC's live, nonstop coverage of events resumes now," Yamaguchi introduced.

"Iwa," Oikawa musically droned, his voice significantly softer than a moment ago. That meant he was _really_ mad. "Did you not take over HBC last night and arrest this freckled-face nincompoop?" Iwaizumi's lips shook. He was about to answer when Toru's shrill screams returned directed at someone else. "Bokuto!" The too-giddy police chief fumbled to attention. "Shut that broadcast down now!"

"Yes, sir!" he saluted. On his way out, he tugged Kenma's arm. No doubt the boy was getting funny ideas seeing Shoyo's face again, and Kotaro had every intention of reminding Kozume that his allegiance was already settled. "Come, Kozume," he beckoned, "lest I remind you that you stood by as Asahi died. If I were Shoyo, I wouldn't want to see your face again."

Kenma drooped, any prior hints of elation zapped. Bokuto was right. After a moment, he followed the police chief out to assist in overrunning HBC.

The diversion was a welcome distraction for Iwaizumi, who was assisting Terushima in pinning down where Hinata's pirate broadcast originated, and with the extra few seconds, they'd found it.

"He's in Tokonami," Yuji piped.

"The Wakunan Convention Center," elaborated Hajime. That explained how Hinata got his own video equipment, as the stated convention center was supposed to host and film the signing of the arms deal with Kitagawa today. It didn't explain how Shoyo had escaped death twice, despite Kuroo's haughty assurances though. Oikawa pulled out his phone to give Tetsuro a call.

* * *

The heels of his boots atop Keishin Ukai's desk, gripping a morning beer to soothe last night's hangover, General Tetsuro Kuroo cackled insanely as Yamaguchi pleasantly assured the nation HBC was back in business. Kuroo wanted three things from the mutiny: a promotion, a more powerful military, and Sugawara's degradation. He didn't care for Oikawa's scheme beyond that and rather enjoyed watching it crumble so utterly.

"Another beer, Aone," he chimed. The lieutenant-general silently hovered at attention, disregarding the drunken man's request amidst the objectively quite serious change in events. "What? This?!" Kuroo snapped, gesturing at the television set in Ukai's office. "This is nothing. Suga's done for, so it's a matter of time before we smudge these diehards." He took another swig, peeping at the TV with one eye.

"…And now I'd like to introduce a special guest with a message for our nation's military." Yamaguchi gestured to his left, and the camera panned to bring Sugawara into the frame. "General Koushi Sugawara, Acting Chief of Staff of the Haikyu Army."

Kuroo spewed his lager over Ukai's cigarette-stained desk.

" _Acting_?!" he cried. "Who's 'Acting'? I'm the one 'Acting'!" Aone resisted chuckling at the way-too-easy pun.

"I have a message for the soldiers and officers of this country," Sugawara began. "Several elements of the armed forces have engineered this plot and captured central headquarters and its command staff. Therefore, I have temporarily taken the role as the nation's supreme military chief in opposition to the dissidents. I have been in touch with military formations identified as loyalists and given you your orders, and I encourage all mutinous soldiers in Yukigaoka City, Tokonami, and everywhere to lay down your arms if you wish to avoid needless calamity. You will be treated humanely and judged justly if you stand down now. This is your only warning, as our forces are ready to liberate the capital and have already begun doing so."

As Suga thanked Yamaguchi for the time, Kuroo heaved, wiping bubbly spittle from his chin. It was a bluff, he thought, as none of his army's three divisions had reported active hostilities from invading armies. But more importantly, had Sugawara really defeated all of Kuroo's traps; and even then, had he somehow entered the capital and taken down HBC's garrison without as much as causing a stir? Unfortunately, the answer was obviously so. The People's General's notorious shrewdness had struck again. Well, two could play at that game, Kuroo thought.

The desk phone rang a moment later.

"Yo!"

"Hinata's at Wakunan!" Oikawa's crazed voice squealed. "Tell that unskilled swine friend of yours this is his _last_ chance to do the job! No missiles this time! I want a body! And since you seem wholly incapable of eliminating Hinata or Sugawara, I've given Bokuto the pleasure of shooting your rival through the forehead for you! Call me back!"

Toru hung up furiously without giving a chance to reply. Kuroo's face collapsed into his palms, the aftermath of Toru's grating shrieks on his hangover-laden brain feeling as if Tetsuro's own forehead had been shot.

After a few heavy breaths, Kuroo peered up at Takanobu, still awaiting orders. "Aone, ready a chinook. And some explosives." The 11th Division's commander cocked an eyebrow. "Don't give me that," Kuroo critiqued. "I'm not running. This is to finish Suga off—after that imbecile of a police chief fails," he chuckled giddily.

* * *

 **With that, we're halfway through! Plenty more to come.**


	9. An Unexpected Ally

**Parting gift before going out of town for a week.**

* * *

Ever since the disappearance of Tokonami's Chief of Police, Hayato Ikejiri, the force was in quiet disarray, but fortunately most of the unit had shown themselves loyalists. That was especially important for the squadron standing watch around the Wakunan Convention Center, where a number of high-profile guests had sheltered.

Of all the members of the foreign diplomatic mission, Kitagawa's resident ambassador in Haikyu, Takeru Nakashima, was the most disheartened by events. A former aide to Ushijima, Takeru defected over half a decade ago, trading insider information on the dictator for lavish rewards. He was naturally more than ecstatic when asked to be the first sitting envoy in his former homeland after Hinata's election but now felt incredibly helpless.

Unable to secure safe passage home, the delegation had withdrawn to the convention center where the nonproliferation deal would have been signed. Nakashima solitarily prowled the building's halls in the ghostly silent eve, overwhelmed with nostalgia of when Ushijima hosted extravagant parties. In the despot's paranoia, he'd carved one of his many underground tunnels to the basement of the building. Cement had been slovenly poured into the underground portal, and the subterranean space converted to a storeroom, Takeru saw. In the lonely chamber, Nakashima thought he could still hear the voices of Ushijima's entourage echoing behind the wall.

And then, with terror, he realized the voices weren't just in his head….

* * *

Commandeering the employee break room, Nakashima quizzically admired Shoyo Hinata glibly sighing over a cup of hot chocolate, fresh off his smash debut on Haikyu televisions. The president's secretary, an innocent girl named Yachi, beheld her boss fondly. Incredibly refreshed, Hinata slammed the cup down and grinned at Takeru.

"Thank you," he voiced. Nakashima smirked. They had offered Hinata the finest Kitagawan tea from Kitagawa, only for the childish leader to demand store-brand, powdered hot cocoa. It made Nakashima blush.

Hinata, his secretary, and foreign minister Tsukishima had narrowly escaped the Black Crow Hotel via one of Ushijima's many underground passageways. It was Hinata's chief bodyguard, a man named Yuu Nishinoya, who discovered the tunnel on a hunch but did not escape the building before the terrifying missile impact. The tunnel entrance caved in from the rockets. Knocked over by the blast, Tsukishima suffered a sprained ankle but otherwise they were alive. For hours, they traversed the darkness using smartphones for light, too far underground to get anything more than momentary cell reception. Nakashima felt humbled as he realized that if he hadn't been in the storeroom when the three met a dead-end, they might have perished in the grungy labyrinth.

"For what you've done for this nation, I thank _you_ ," Takeru answered. Hinata's story only grew more amazing after his rescue. After acquainting himself with several contact attempts during his entombment, Hinata suddenly adorned an uncharacteristic resolve and initiative. It was the president's idea to hijack the 6 a.m. broadcast by the subversives, for which Nakashima proudly offered his nation's assistance. To accomplish the feat, a general named Sugawara slipped into Yukigaoka City with a small force and overran the broadcast center of the former state media, the laidback occupiers of the capital too convinced of victory to notice. Takeru for his part liked to credit their General Shunki Kawatabi of Kitagawa's Air Force, the military rep with the delegation, who arranged air sorties on the Haikyu border to further distract their enemy.

A knock at the door heralded the entrance of Kawatabi in a murky yellow jacket with the injured Tsukishima hobbling on a wooden rod pilfered from a closet.

"Tsukishima!" Hinata leaped. Kei grimaced as the president clumsily assisted him to lie down on the couch.

"So, it went well?" the absentee Kei queried.

"You bet! They're everywhere. Look!" Hinata snatched a cell phone and replayed an amateur video of a protest. The police were too afraid to shoot. Tsukishima, who'd criticized the insane plan, was quite bewildered by how well it seemed to have turned out. As Yachi relayed stories of the protests happening in oddly strategic locations, he skeptically couldn't help but wonder if someone were pulling the strings.

"So now what?" he continued, stretching his swollen, throbbing ankle onto the sofa's armrest. It sounded as if Narita's 4th Army to the north was approaching Tokonami to liberate Chidoriyama Airfield from whence the missiles had been fired. It all rather annoyed the unenthusiastic Tsukishima: all this fanaticism for someone as simple as Hinata.

"I don't suppose you mind waiting things out here until this madness blows over?" Nakashima joked. Hinata grinned as the head of the police unit guarding the center burst into the breakroom.

"Sirs! Haikyu soldiers are outside!" he panted.

"You hear that, Tsukishima? Narita's here!" bounced Shoyo.

"No," interjected the officer. "They're attacking my men."

Nakashima shot up. Yachi's grin sank until Hinata firmly wrapped an arm around her.

"It's possible they traced the broadcast," conceded Kawatabi reluctantly. Dang it, Nakashima thought. He couldn't help but feel this should have been anticipated. Right now, though, Hinata's life was of the utmost importance. Before they could evacuate the room, the room rattled violently at the sound of bone-shaking boom. The police captain grabbed his radio. One of his subordinates announced a tank had just penetrated the convention center wall with a shell and soldiers were flooding in.

Hinata astounded Tsukishima by wriggling beneath one of his arms to hoist the foreign minister up while Kawatabi supported the other limb. Nakashima and Yachi led the way in the search for a hiding place. In the urgency of the situation, Takeru could only think of one spot.

* * *

While soldiers canvassed the convention center upstairs, Hinata, Yachi, Tsukishima, Nakashima, and Kawatabi found themselves in the converted storeroom with the circular, sledgehammer-punctured breach in the wall into Ushijima's bleak labyrinth. Takeru and Yachi scrambled to remove rubble from the base of the hole to clear a path for a nearby shelf Shunki and Shoyo were trying to budge to conceal the gap while Hinata, Yachi, and Tsukishima hid inside. Propped up by the opposite wall and his improvised walking stick, Kei was ashamed he was useless. Just when Takeru and Hitoka finished, Shunki tragically discovered the immovable shelf was fixed in place by wall brackets.

Nakashima cursed. The dutiful police captain guarding the locked door to the service hallway hollered that the intruders were moving into the basement. Nothing else in the room would be sufficient to conceal the hole, and backtracking into the hallway was probably suicide. He wished the president and his friends could flee the convention center the way they came in, if it were possible to predict where they'd end up so they could be extricated again.

And then he realized it was possible.

"Kawatabi," he barked, "Ushijima placed explosives at each entrance. Are these ones intact?" Hinata cocked his head with puzzlement while Tsukishima flinched, dreading where this was going.

"You want to destroy the entrance?" Hinata quizzed.

Takeru didn't answer directly. "Mr. President, when you were underground, did you notice notches on the support beams?"

"Yeah!" Hitoka piped. "Some were different shapes, and…."

"Those notches indicate where a path leads," Nakashima urgently interrupted. "The crosshatches lead to the airport. We'll inform your friend Sugawara where the exit should be and free you from there."

"You're awesome, Nakashima!" Hinata applauded. Yachi shrank, much less enthusiastic and not without the president's notice. He faced her and gently wrapped his fingers around her forearm.

"It's OK. I'll keep you safe, like I'll keep everybody safe," he comforted.

Hitoka's cheeks blushed rosily. The president hadn't said anything especially magical—he wasn't the most gifted socializer after all—but she swallowed her anxiety anyway to not hurt his feelings. She felt a radiant security from her boss in almost any circumstance.

"I see wires!" bellowed Kawatabi inspecting the base of the tunnel. Wires perhaps meant the hidden booby trap hadn't been disabled when the hole was sealed, but it was no guarantee that the explosives _weren't_ removed or that they were even still volatile. If their attempt failed to activate the trap after Hinata, Tsukishima, and Yachi had fled, it was quite probable the intruders would catch the president in the narrow passage in no time.

This had to work, Nakashima prayed.

"All right, we're going," thanked Hinata as he assisted Yachi into the portal. "Let's go, Tsukishima!"

"Screw that," Kei mumbled dejectedly. Hinata jolted and spun to face Kei.

"What do you mean—"

"Look at me!" the quivering blond cried, wobbling on the makeshift cane. "I can't walk to the airport. Are you crazy?"

"Tsukishima!"

Kei wobbled silently. He didn't like the choice he was about to make. In fact, he hated how much of a martyr he was becoming for the hopelessly jovial president.

"Hands up!" growled a voice outside the room, taking the police captain on guard hostage. Nakashima shoved a broom under the locked door handle, hoping to buy a few extra seconds.

"Go!" Kawatabi ordered. Shoyo stubbornly glared at Kei who wavered but said nothing. They'd lost Nishinoya, and Hinata did not want to lose any others. He fiercely stared at the guilty drooping foreign minister.

"Don't die!"

Tsukishima froze. If that was the best sendoff Hinata could have come up with, he'd have much rather Shoyo had said nothing at all.

Before he could react, Hinata swiftly hurled into the passageway and guided Yachi in a sprint through the musty tunnel.

Behind the three still in the room, the door handle jiggled. Kawatabi rushed to rig the explosives when a gun obliterated the door handle on the outside with an earsplitting ring. The broomstick snapped as the door gave way. Soldiers from the 26th Regiment of the 3rd Army's 12th Division poured into the space, semiautomatics on Nakashima, Tsukishima, and Kawatabi who backed away from the hole without having set off the dynamite. Hinata and Yachi were doomed.

In the soldiers' wake marched in Lt. Kentaro Kyotani. The instinctual regiment commander gazed through the conspicuous hole in the back wall and, with near-doglike eyesight, detected two figures sprinting into the darkness. Lt.-Gen. Yamamoto insisted that Hinata's body be intact as proof of his demise, but in a moment of feral desire, Kentaro didn't care.

Without a word, he pulled a hand grenade from his belt and lobbed it like a beanbag into the tunnel.

"Hinata!" Tsukishima shrieked before the grenade and dynamite exploded simultaneously. A deafening blast showered concrete fragments into storeroom ahead of a suffocating fog of dust and dirt. The recoil hurled Tsukishima to the floor. As the dust settled, he begrudgingly gazed at the portal, now blocked by a mountain of rubble and gravel. A fist wrinkled the back of his shirt before Kyotani hoisted Tsukishima and brought Kei's face to his own.

"Hinata is dead!" the lieutenant spat.

Perhaps he was, perhaps he wasn't, Tsukishima wondered.

But what did it matter? Hinata and Yachi left their mobile devices in their haste, and the only three people who knew where the pair might be going were now hostages of a lieutenant who appeared quite literally the personification of a wild dog. For a moment, Kei speculated that maybe—just maybe—their captor would release the Kitagawan diplomats in exchange for keeping Kei as a hostage, unknowingly permitting them to contact Suga as planned.

And for Tsukishima, the thought of being a prisoner of this bestial lieutenant was the most terrifying thought of all, second only to one:

The thought he might be summarily shot in the head.

* * *

 **Did Hinata survive? Wait and find out.**


	10. The Siege of HBC

**A healthy helping of Suga and Bokuto to start off April.**

* * *

The current state of affairs was fully anticipated yet wholly unforeseen. Sugawara exposing himself on HBC's airwaves guaranteed a forceful response, but given Kuroo's vendetta, Koshi expected soldiers and not the police to come after him. It made the People's General wonder if somebody above Kuroo were pulling the strings—perhaps the presumptive president whom Terushima (another surprise-yet-not-a-surprise) was introducing before Hinata hijacked the feed.

Flashing police lights besieged the broadcast center, and already law enforcement was progressively clearing each floor of the station. On the third level in the studio, Suga glanced around pensively. His comrades consisted of a handful of soldiers (scarce enough to successfully evade detection infiltrating the city) and the studio's engineering and production staff, while at the anchor desk, Yamaguchi warned his viewers to expect another brief interruption. Sugawara gulped. The police responding instead of the military didn't derail his overall plan, but he'd hoped to appeal to the sympathies of fellow soldiers to stall long enough for his scheme to reach fruition. He'd have to work on the fly to delay his and his companions' arrests.

Akiteru hastily tiptoed into the studio and announced the intruders were ascending to the third floor. Sugawara signaled to a production manager to cut the feed, and in short order Yamaguchi reluctantly signed off:

"We will be going off-air briefly now, but this is not a surrender. Continue to fight, as we all shall. Victory today will be ours." He forced his facial muscles to remain stolid until the camera's blinking light disappeared, and then he released a heavy, fearful exhale.

Please, let this work out, he prayed. Across the room Sugawara bore unperturbed ease, providing instant reassurance to everyone. If only Suga were as assured as the people he was assuring.

Bellowing in the hall preceded a squadron of police officers filtering into the studio. There was no resistance or gunfire, everyone including Koshi laying down their weapons; those were Suga's orders after all. After the law enforcement agents, their slick, spiky-haired commander sashayed into the studio.

"Hey, hey, hey! Were you waiting for me?" Bokuto winked. "I just wanted to introduce myself to the People's General personally." He bowed disingenuously. Behind him, avoiding eye contact, Kenma slinked in and planted against the wall. Suga gaped slightly, Kenma's presence the first true surprise this morning. Catching Koshi's mild astonishment, Bokuto sneered.

"Ah, you've met my dearest comrade," he boasted, spotlighting Kenma. "As you can see, there's no point in fighting anymore." Kozume slouched miserably, his disinclination ruining the triumphant mood Kotaro was trying to convey. Kenma was still conflicted, and now Bokuto had an idea to snap his compadre out of his denialist funk.

He furnished a set of handcuffs. "Kenma, arrest the general, will you?"

Kozume caught the handcuffs flung into his chest, casting despairing eyes at his subordinate indecorously giving orders. Kenma wanted no more part in this affair. And yet, as Bokuto had regularly reminded him, Kenma was just as guilty as the rest of them. Redemption, it seemed, was truly impossible at this stage anyway.

Without a word, Kenma trudged behind a stoic Sugawara. His arrester now to his rear, Koshi offered his wrists, palms open and inwards, thumbs down. Kozume grimaced at how easy Suga was making this. Quietly he took one of the general's arms and edged one cuff towards his wrist.

"I'm surprised to see you part of this," vocalized Sugawara, interrupting the tension. "I think Shoyo would be disappointed to." Kenma flinched, the open cuff hovering above Koshi's wrist.

"I'll tell the president personally," Bokuto courted, trying to keep Kozume focused. "Where is little Shoyo anyway?"

"You're going to take that kind of attitude from a subordinate?" Suga posed, ignoring Kotaro's inquiry. "Are you really doing this because you want to?" Kenma trembled, the room's occupants gazing quizzically.

"Before you paint Kenma the innocent bystander," interposed Kotaro again, "let me avail you Kozume is the one who let us into the Bunker and betrayed Asahi to us."

Suga glared, trying to parse out Bokuto's meaning. He already knew the vice-president's fate from Akaashi, but it almost seemed as if Kotaro were implying he himself were complicit in Asahi's demise.

"What's that look, General?" Kotaro teased. "Don't you know I shot Asahi personally?"

In the moment it was all Koshi could do to restrain himself. He had to stay focused; and despite the accusations, Kenma's silent tremors seemed to suggest something else was going through Shoyo's dear friend's mind.

"Ignore Bokuto. Is this what _you_ wanted?"

Kenma was too stiff to answer, letting Kotaro intercede again: "Kenma knew about this a long time, General, hey, hey. Yet he chose to sit on that intel and let the _whole_ thing play out."

Yamaguchi reeled hearing the alleged betrayal. Kenma tried to prevent himself from crying. Even so, Suga didn't wince.

"I'm not concerned about that," avowed Koshi. He wanted to take a different route, for Kozume's sake. "Who's really behind this?"

Kotaro sneered. "What if I said: Tobio Kageyama?"

Yamaguchi's jaw dropped, and even Akiteru was shocked. Suga's face quaked. Of all the scenarios he'd envisioned, Kageyama helping the traitors was not one of them.

"Is that true, Kenma?" Suga inquired. Though not apprised of the coup's inner workings, Kozume knew Tobio had been slated to proclaim himself the new president, but he said nothing—all the answer Suga unfortunately needed.

"I see," the general mumbled before turning his focus back to the police chief. "So, where are Sawamura and Tanaka and the rest of the cabinet?"

"Oh, you hadn't heard?" Bokuto grinned coyly at the mention of Daichi. "Sawamura is dead."

Suga's throat constricted, biting his lip, now nearly unable to contain his rage at the treachery Bokuto jollily was narrating. No matter what now, Suga would make sure all of the masterminds of this fiendishness—Kageyama, Kuroo, and Bokuto—paid.

Still, he had to remain focused. He just had to stall a little bit longer.

"Bokuto," interjected Suga, "you've seen the protests your wickedness has wrought. What are you going to do about them?" Gratefully the police and military posted around Yukigaoka City had not acted against any of the peaceful demonstrations. It was a cautious, provisional stance, but, for the former brigade commander in Ushiwaka's army, it was genuinely not Bokuto's preferred approach.

"Hey, hey, if they become a nuisance, we'll shoot them."

Kenma visibly jolted as Kotaro smirked with the utmost confidence and sadistic solemnity behind his threat. Unawares to Bokuto but keenly noticed by Suga, Bokuto's subordinates didn't seem as enthusiastic.

"You really think that'll work?" Suga quizzed with a tint of self-assurance.

Without warning, Bokuto drew a handgun and aimed it straight at Sugawara's head. And suddenly Suga realized he may have underestimated Kotaro's bloodlust.

"Yes, yes, I do," replied Bokuto calmly. Akiteru tried to spring into action, but the other police officers had their guns solidly aimed at him. A distraught Kenma backed off frantically. Koshi raised his arms above his head, cueing his men to stay composed and hoping to sway his would-be executioner. Bokuto widely simpered, undeterred. Suga had miscalculated; it was over.

"Do you hear something?" one of Bokuto's officers mumbled, disrupting the police chief's concentration. Sure enough though, a droning reverberation was apparent. The production crew glanced every which way, mystified how the thumping noise could penetrate the soundproof studio so effectively. Yamaguchi tried zeroing in on a word that the vibration appeared to be chanting. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination or not, but suddenly he caught his lips sounding what his ears were perceiving:

"Hi, Na, Ta…." Tadashi slapped his hand over his gob for fear of aggravating their foes. There was no kneejerk response, however. This was definitely a unified mantra of "Hi-na-ta."

"Commander, mob approaching from the east," Kotaro's radio crackled through his earpiece. Bokuto frowned and holstered his handgun, his sensationalized execution of General Sugawara now completely ruined. Even his subordinates seemed disconcerted. Kotaro barked no orders as he stomped past Sugawara and Kenma and barged into a back hallway, then into a street-facing office. Kenma gaped after the discontented police chief.

Koshi barely kept himself from exhaling in relief; their "backup" had arrived just in the nick of time.

"Kenma, I am your prisoner, aren't I?" goaded Suga. "Shall we investigate?"

Kotaro opened the window and protruded his torso over the street three stories below. A sea of people—young and old, men and women—trooped down the street towards the police blockade around HBC, stretched imperviously from storefront to storefront. Bokuto's officers guarding the exterior ducked behind patrol cars, assessing the situation and awaiting orders.

"Where are all these people coming from?" muttered Bokuto.

"They've been organizing since last night," answered Suga calmly from behind, poised near the doorway with Kenma.

"Impossible!" rebuffed Kotaro. "How?!"

He scanned the mob again only to behold a shocking sight.

Near the head of the crowd was a mostly nondescript college student named Yui Michimiya, a girl noteworthy only for heavily promoting Hinata's candidacy on college campuses. What caught Kotaro's eye really was the woman flanking the activist: the gracious and voluptuous figure of Kiyoko Shimizu. Could it be that, while Bokuto's men unsuccessfully scoured the city for the youth and culture minister, she was organizing an uprising for when the time was right?

"Curse you, Kiyoko," he murmured, snapping a handheld radio from his uniform and bringing it to his mouth. "Open fire on the dissidents. Kill anyone who resists."

"No!" objected Kenma. Suga, however, thrust his palm in front of the police commander. Kenma gawped before realizing something was wrong.

Amidst the persistent chanting and lack of gunshots, Bokuto again brought the radio to his mouth: "Repeat. This is an order. Shoot the mob. Now!"

Kenma could hear Bokuto's transmission just fine in his own earpiece, yet again there seemed no response from the officers down below. Kenma wandered to the window as well to behold the cause of the dilemma.

Every one within the contingent below shook trepidatiously. Shooting civilians was a textbook move from the Ushiwaka days. The officers of the Yukigaoka Police Department—comprised principally of new recruits after Ushiwaka's downfall—had obeyed orders to depose the democratic government solely because of its alleged inability (in the eyes of its commanders) to run the country alongside promises of better pay and benefits.

They hadn't signed up to mow down the ordinary citizens they purported to save.

Bokuto clenched his teeth, steaming madly. Though Koshi remained steely, Bokuto thought he could feel the general inwardly mocking Kotaro's predicament. Instantly he spun around and pointed his pistol at Sugawara.

"No!" cried Kenma. Kozume grappled Kotaro's arm, redirecting Bokuto's bullet into the carpet. The pair wrestled before Kenma flung Bokuto's spine over the windowsill, his torso arching out the window for all to see. The gunshot nabbed the officers' attentions while the chanting momentarily subsided. Some of the protesters withdrew cell phones and began recording the melee.

Bokuto kneed his superior in the gut and shimmied himself back inside. Before he could get anywhere, Suga rammed the police chief into the wall, Bokuto's wrist nailed against the plaster. Kenma pried Kotaro's gun from his fingers and ushered Sugawara aside to restrain the police chief personally. The brief combat over, Sugawara scooped up Bokuto's handgun to provide coverage.

"OK, Kenma—" began Suga before Kozume spontaneously yanked Bokuto by the collar, towed him to the window, and displayed his hostage to the crowd and the police like a prize. Kenma drew his own pistol and jammed it into Bokuto's skull.

"Listen!" he declared. "As supreme commander of Haikyu's police, I hereby direct that any law enforcement officer who has raised their hand against the government—who now lays down their weapon, surrenders, and is clear of any grave crime—will be exonerated!"

Kenma dourly glared at the stunned officers below. With little hesitation, the contingent set their guns at their feet, stood, and raised their hands over their heads. Yui's cell phone among others had recorded the whole turn of events including Kenma's declaration of amnesty.

"Get that out online," Kiyoko whispered. Yui gazed at the woman whom she'd sheltered all night and who'd organized the march on HBC at Suga's request with the intention of overwhelming the traitors' siege. If this piece of histrionics at the window were also part of the People's General's calculations, it explained why so many people revered Koshi Sugawara's shrewd foresight.

Even if—Sugawara blushed privately—he hadn't expected his plan to work out _this_ good.

* * *

The police officers detained at HBC were held in various rooms pending determination of exact guilt and interrogation. Kotaro Bokuto for his part received his own personal guards in a separate office on an upper floor. Yamaguchi greeted the nation's television audience with renewed vigor, and, after recounting the station heroics, Yui's recording of Kenma's promise of amnesty was broadcast cyclically.

"You really think Shoyo will stand by that?" Kenma queried Suga, afraid of Hinata's reaction—never mind whether Shoyo would forgive Kozume personally. Sugawara placed a comforting hand on Kenma's shoulder.

"No, that's exactly what Shoyo would have done," he grinned. Suga then led Kenma from the studio to their makeshift command center. Already reports were coming in that the rest of Suga's 1st Army was encroaching on the suburbs around the capital. Therefore, they needed to plan their next move for liberation and for subjugating the masterminds of the putsch. "So, Kenma," Suga continued, "tell us everything you know about the people behind this."

* * *

 **Next chapter's first draft is already written, so stay tuned!**


	11. Mad Dog's Fury

**So I said it wouldn't be long, but I took a break from this to write a somewhat darker fic, Life Hereafter, which is now complete so I'm resuming this one! Speaking of dark, this chapter is now probably my favorite.**

* * *

This couldn't be happening.

Hunched over his cell phone by the sound equipment in the presidential foyer, Terushima rewound the panning shot in a YouTube upload of Bokuto's undoing. Amidst the crowd of protesters, behind the youth and culture minister Kiyoko, he recognized a woman.

It was his wife, Hana.

Yuji gulped. Maybe she hadn't seen his televised introduction of the incoming head of state, but that didn't matter. He'd joined Kageyama and Oikawa to protect his family from arrest, but by joining the protests, Hana just sabotaged those efforts. Yuji had only one hope now with the coup gradually falling apart: get out of the Presidential Estate and dissociate himself from the traitors ASAP.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" Toru chimed, peeping over Yuji's shoulder at the paused video. Terushima yelped and spun around, hiding his phone.

"N-n-n-nothing," he stammered.

"Really? That woman looked a lot like your wife."

Yuji giggled nervously. "That woman? _Nooooo_ ," he feigned theatrically. With a devious smile, Oikawa snapped a finger above his head. Iwaizumi promptly appeared at Toru's side with two soldiers.

"Iwa, I think Yuji needs a private room to meditate on his loyalties," Oikawa remarked. The soldiers immediately grappled Yuji's arms and proceeded to drag him from the room, Terushima pleading and flailing helplessly. Once in the hallway, Iwaizumi shut the foyer's double doors behind them, engulfing the room in silence. The AV crew had been shuffled into a separate room earlier as a precaution to prevent defection. That left Toru, Iwa, Yutaro, and Tobio in the foyer. Kageyama, still dressed up for his coming out to the nation, remained squatting in an armchair, Kindaichi invariably at his side keeping guard.

Oikawa pouted when his cell phone rang. With a deep breath, he answered it with feigned glee. "Tetsu!" he sang into the receiver. "What news you have for me?"

In Ukai's office at military headquarters, Gen. Kuroo snickered; he could tell Toru's jubilation was an act. "Besides the fact the police have defected to Suga?" he jabbed.

"Is Hinata dead?" Oikawa spat, his tone changing.

"So they say…," teased Kuroo.

Toru's eyebrows furled, a fact not unnoticed by Tobio. "What's that supposed to mean? I said I wanted a body!"

Kuroo twirled the phone cord in his fingers playfully. "Well, you see, he was in Ushiwaka's tunnels, and there was a cave-in—."

"We can't screw this up again! Unless there's a body, we can't tell the public anything!" screeched Oikawa.

Kuroo shook his head and sipped a bit more of the beer he probably shouldn't be drinking. He didn't feel like explaining that the other two divisions in the 3rd Army besides Yamamoto's 12th were marching on Tokonami, meaning Narita's 4th Army had convinced them Gen. Ennoshita had been unseated. Seriously outnumbered, Tora didn't have the manpower to spread his forces across the city. All of his regiments except Kyotani's had pulled back to the 3rd Army's HQ at Chidoriyama Airfield, while Kyotani's 26th Regiment at Wakunan would shortly have to do the same.

"Before you get too excited," Kuroo interceded, "Tora did capture the people who were helping Hinata: among them, Kitagawa's ambassador."

"Kitagawa?" Oikawa repeated.

"Mhm. Tsukishima and Kitagawa's whole delegation were at Wakunan. Tora plans to keep them all as hostages at Chidoriyama."

Toru sneered. Though few knew it to its fullest extent, the grand plan was always to eliminate the Karasuno Party, have Kageyama take the fall, betray Kageyama in a staged countercoup, blame their rival nation Kitagawa for fomenting the unrest, and go to war. Kitagawa's own interference in the discord could be the ammunition he needed—if the circumstances were different. Unfortunately, between Bokuto's failure and Sugawara, it wasn't the time to be drawing the ire of a foreign power. They would exploit this turn of events later—after Oikawa's control had been solidified.

"Tetsu, preserve the evidence of Kitagawa's involvement and keep Tsukishima prisoner but release Kitagawa's delegates. We can't afford to provoke our neighbors just yet."

"You sure about that?" quipped Tetsuro.

"Don't worry. We have our casus belli," Toru continued, the warmongering phrase "casus belli" piquing Tobio's interest. "First, we eliminate Suga, and that I leave to you." Toru smirked, knowing how thrilled his counterpart would be.

Sure enough, Kuroo beamed satisfactorily. Not only did he get the pleasure of annihilating his most potent foe, Toru proved he remembered the conditions of his cooperation with the coup: eventual conquest of Kitagawa in a war that would allow Kuroo even more battlefield glory.

"May I use Tsukishima and our other hostages in taking down Suga?" Kuroo inquired.

"Whatever you want," authorized Toru, and they finished their call. Oikawa smiled at a disgruntled Tobio.

"You're planning to attack Kitagawa?" he questioned.

"What _I'm_ planning is not your business, Mr. President," goaded Toru.

"You're insane!" Kageyama leapt from his seat, ready to charge. Kindaichi desperately grabbed Tobio's arm as Iwaizumi across the room drew his handgun and aimed it at their ally/hostage/scapegoat. Seeing the situation, Kageyama gruffly relented and irksomely jerked his arm from Yutaro's grip.

"I'm not the president. Hinata is," he murmured. Even if Hinata were dead, after everything, Kageyama would still be unable to accept the job title in good conscience.

"Hinata's dead," flatly stated Toru.

Kageyama peered skeptically at Oikawa.

"Is he?"

The two glared for several moments.

"Yutaro, take Tobio into _his_ office, and don't let him out of your sight," Oikawa commanded.

* * *

In expectation of transporting all the hostages to Chidoriyama, the various functionaries arrested at the Wakunan Convention Center were rounded up in a ballroom watched by several, semiautomatic-armed guards. They were lined up in a row, kneeling with wrists zip-tied behind their backs. The officer under whose auspices they were detained, Lt. "Mad Dog" Kyotani, stared daggers at each prisoner as he marched along the row of dissidents. He passed Tsukishima at the end of the row and then made an about-face, glaring down on Nakashima and Kawatabi next in line to Kei's right.

"You realize this is a violation of diplomatic immunity," Ambassador Nakashima docilely objected.

Without warning, Kentaro pointed his handgun at Nakashima's face.

"Wait!" interjected Tsukishima. "They have nothing to do with this." And he reluctantly added: "I'm the one you want."

Takeru silently mourned for Haikyu's foreign minister. They all knew that if Hinata had any hope of getting out of the tunnels—if he were even still alive—they had to tell friendly forces where he planned to exit the underground labyrinth. And for that to happen, they had to persuade their captors to release at least one of them who could relay the message.

It didn't seem very likely given the unbridled ferocity of their detainer, however. As it was, the feral lieutenant ferociously eyed Tsukishima for interrupting. In retaliation, he swung his steel-toed boot into the side of Kei's head. Kei thumped down, the temple band of his glasses snapping and the snapped frames bouncing across the floor. His right eye swelled from the impact as he futilely tried focusing without his specs. He could hardly make it out when an NCO appeared in the doorway at the back of the ballroom.

"Lieutenant," called the noncommissioned officer, "trucks are ready to return to Chidoriyama. We have new orders: release the Kitagawans and take only Tsukishima."

The reaction of the prisoners was immediate. Some, like Kawatabi, were incredulous, some gasped aloud. Nakashima bent forward and quivered, trying to process why this impromptu stroke of luck had taken place.

They were going to live, and more importantly, Hinata was going to live.

Only for Tsukishima was it a mixed blessing. Kei was pessimistically certain the only reason they wanted him alive was simply to kill him later.

He very much loathed being a martyr.

Kyotani grunted, not the least bit pleased with the new command. To him, the Kitagawans were rebels, saboteurs, and dissidents. It made no sense why they should receive any mercy. He proceeded to release his anger in one lung-shattering kick into Kei's chest, making him nearly gag.

"Move!" he barked at Tsukishima, aiming his gun at him.

His vision blurred, hands tied, and right ankle still seething from the sprain during the escape from the Black Crow Hotel, Kei couldn't raise himself. After a few moments, two guards lifted the helpless hostage and led him limping toward the door at the back of the ballroom. Kei could barely make out the splotch in the doorway indicative of the NCO whose directives had just saved the lives of the Kitagawan delegation and Hinata too.

"Soldiers," Kyotani's gruff voice to the other guards decreed, "kill the others."

The order didn't process in Tsukishima's mind at first. He only realized something was amiss when Nakashima, Kawatabi, and the other civilians collectively squeaked for mercy. And then gunshots. Dozens of them, harmonizing with and stifling bloodcurdling screams. It all happened before the NCO could object and repeat Lt.-Gen. Yamamoto's orders, but it almost certainly wouldn't have made a difference. After a few moments, the screaming and the shooting stopped. The half-dozen staffers and officials from Kitagawa were slumped on the floor, bleeding and covered in blood, Nakashima and Kawatabi included.

"We're moving out!" Kyotani projected, leading his troops towards the exit. Tsukishima and the guards supporting him held in place as the officer rightly known as the "Mad Dog" filed past with a gust of wind. The soldiers marched on after their commander, Kei now crying.

It was over, he thought at last. Even if Hinata were still alive, he and the even more innocent Yachi would die of suffocation, dehydration, or worse underground—lost, alone, and never to be found. Tsukishima limped on, abjectly ready to join Nishinoya, Nakashima, and the president on the other side when his own time came.

* * *

 **The best laid plans of mice and men, I suppose. Any guess on who the President of Kitagawa is? I wasn't going to feature him, but now I think I'll find a way to squeeze in a cameo.**

 **Prepare for everything to go way south-for everyone.**


	12. One Hour

**Thank you to those who have favorited and/or followed this story so far. When you're already 11 chapters in, and people still start a story this long, read all the way to the current chapter, and then hit "follow" to stay updated, it's rewarding. I hope to not let you down!**

* * *

To those who'd witnessed the destruction of the underground passageway at the Wakunan Convention Center, Hinata's fate was a matter of assumption and speculation. But beneath the earth, President Shoyo and his assistant Yachi were very much alive. Toppled by the blast from Kyotani's grenade, Shoyo pushed himself up, realizing his palm was splayed over something very squishy. As he heard Yachi's moans underneath him, he dreadfully realized his hand was upon her breast.

"Gah!" the president leapt away, blushing brightly though impossible to tell in the dark. Yachi didn't realize that it was the president who had unintentionally groped her and was equally embarrassed herself, although she had no intention of complaining.

"S-s-s-s-s-sorry!" Hinata finally stammered, bowing for forgiveness.

"I-it's fine," she comforted, touched by the young leader's self-abasement. Then Hinata lit up a flashlight, stood adroitly, and extended a hand to the woman unwittingly drawn into this mess. Yachi stared at the outstretched palm offering to help her stand.

"Come, let's go to the airport and back home," Hinata invited.

After a moment Yachi concurred with a nod. She let him lift her up as her fears suddenly melted away.

And then, the pair found themselves in the crosshairs of another flashlight beam held by a third person in the tunnel.

* * *

With the capitulation of the police, the liberation of Yukigaoka City proceeded smoother than anticipated. Elements of Suga's 1st Army and Kinoshita's 5th Army had at last arrived on the capital's outskirts and advanced through the suburbs, facing moderate resistance from the three traitorous divisions of Kuroo's 2nd Army. Around 10 a.m., word arrived that the Supreme Court, where most of the coup's political detainees were gathered, had been retaken. A chopper was sent to airlift the released administrative officials to HBC. After his release, interior minister Tanaka, Kenma's boss, was shown footage of the police commander's betrayal of Bokuto, but the snub-nosed politician reportedly acted unimpressed. Kozume didn't know what to make of that rumor as he dreaded the inevitable reunion with the man he'd helped capture.

In an interior room on a middle floor of the Haikyu Broadcasting Corp., fold-up tables pushed together made two islands bearing strategic maps of Yukigaoka City and the whole country. Various stand-in objects served for troop deployments. At Suga's direction, Akiteru plodded a goliath paperweight on top of the Supreme Court. Beside them overseeing the progress were Kenma and Kiyoko, the latter regularly checking a cell phone Yui loaned her as her various contacts throughout the city gave her Intel on the enemy's activities.

With the Supreme Court fallen, the other two objectives in the capital were military headquarters—where Kuroo likely was—and the Presidential Estate the end of Ministry Street—with Oikawa, Iwaizumi, Kageyama, and Terushima.

"So, uh, which one?" Kenma gulped. Gen. Suga furrowed his brow. Kenma didn't know what Kindaichi looked like, but it was suspected both he and Iwaizumi were with Oikawa at Hinata's residence; thus, capturing there first would eliminate the commanders of _two_ of Kuroo's divisions at once. Even so, Kuroo was too much a wildcard to be left alone while they focused their spearhead towards the city's civic center.

Then there was the other elephant in the room: despite Bokuto's claim, was Kageyama really allied with the traitors? Kotaro remained tightlipped after his detention (it seemed he expected his benefactors to rescue him), and while Kenma recalled Kageyama was indeed poised to be declared president, Kozume also noted Oikawa seemed to be running the show. Nobody wanted to believe Tobio—the man whose election-time political defection helped secure Hinata's polling victory—was a quisling, but the suspense was quietly exasperating. Suga also couldn't help but ponder the significance of a peculiar request of Hinata's in interrupting the 6 a.m. broadcast: the president insisted the feed be cut before the new president was presented to the nation. Shoyo didn't say why that mattered so much to him.

The whole room was focused on Suga when Yamaguchi's frantic voice in the hall outside startled them. He was arguing with the guards demanding to see Suga. Akiteru opened the door and dragged the sweat-coated anchorman-on-break into the office before the commotion attracted too much attention. Yamaguchi instantly latched onto Kei's brother's uniform desperately. "Akiteru! Tsukki's in trouble!"

"Yamaguchi, what about Kei?" Suga inquired as Kiyoko peeked at a new phone message from Yui. Yamaguchi noticed Koshi and immediately charged for the general, latching onto Suga's coat the same way.

"They're going to kill him!" he screamed.

"What do you mean?!" Akiteru angrily burst, grappling Tadashi's collar and flinging him onto a sofa shoved against the wall. Simultaneously Kiyoko, gaping at her phone, slapped her hand over her mouth.

"Everyone, look at this!" she urgently alerted. Akiteru, Suga, and Kenma grouped behind her, Yamaguchi remaining on the couch as he correctly predicted what it was Kiyoko had discovered.

Everyone's heart skipped a beat, as the video on the smartphone began to play.

At the center of the frame appeared Kei, without glasses, in ragged clothes, and with a right black eye, kneeling with hands apparently bound behind his back. Either side of him in the background could be seen Gen. Chikara Ennoshita and the police chief of Tokonami, Hayato Ikejiri. Kei squinted as he tried to read a cue card beside the camera:

"My name is Kei Tsukishima," his beleaguered voice croaked, "minister of foreign affairs in the de—defunct administration of Shoyo Hinata. I have been advised to tell you that"—he paused painfully—"Shoyo Hinata is—." He started to heave as if unwilling to finish. Before finally resuming his speech, he faced the camera with eyes shut and mouthed something, noticed by both Kiyoko and Suga. Tsukki spoke again: "—dead."

He broke into audible crying, evidently more so from public humiliation than mourning. The camera operator seemed to realize they would get nothing more useful out of the prisoner, and so the camera shifted upwards to behold a military officer with a gaudy yellow Mohawk. Suga scowled as he recognized the snide grin of Lt.-Gen. Yamamoto.

"Further resistance is futile," Tora acclaimed. "The rest of this message is for the leader of the rebels, General Koshi Sugawara." The people crowded around Kiyoko's phone all looked at their leader, whose eyes bulged incredulously. Kuroo obviously had a hand in whatever Tora was about to say. "General Sugawara," Yamamoto continued, "you are to present himself at military headquarters in Yukigaoka City no later than 11 a.m." He withdrew his handgun and sauntered behind the bowing Tsukishima. Ikejiri and Ennoshita both looked up as Tora stuck the gun to Kei's skull. Reacting to the weapon, Kei's spectacles-free eyes dilated, and his lips appeared to move rapidly and incoherently. "For each hour that passes without your appearance at HQ," Tora concluded with the gun in position, "one hostage will be shot." The video continued a few more seconds with Kei mumbling and Tora glaring into the camera until the image finally froze with the gun to Tsukki's cranium.

Only Yamaguchi's hysterical snivels broke the silence in the strategy room. Akiteru screeched violently as he rammed his fist into the wall. Kenma stumbled back to the table and found himself gawping at military HQ on the map. Kiyoko inhaled deeply to compose herself while Sugawara staunchly marched over to the table beside Kenma. His eyes darted across the map, analyzing the likelihood of overrunning HQ before 11:00. They had 55 minutes as of right now, and the resistance already displayed by the enemy wasn't encouraging. Kuroo clearly intended for Suga to either surrender the loyalist forces or at least negotiate a ceasefire if he wanted him to meet the deadline to present himself at their base. Koshi growled.

"Akiteru, how close is Narita to encircling Chidoriyama?" Sugawara asked without taking his eyes from the map of the capital. The question snapped the elder Tsukishima back to reality, and he twirled to attention.

"S-soon," he stammered. "The 3rd Army's 8th Division will complete the encirclement in t-twenty minutes, I believe."

"8th Division? Isn't that Inuoka's?" Sugawara interrogated.

"I think so," replied Akiteru. After Yamamoto conquered 3rd Army headquarters at Chidoriyama Airfield in Tokonami, Tora had given false deployment orders to the army's other two divisions to keep them away from the city. On Suga's directive, Gen. Narita of the nearby 4th Army challenged the two divisions' actions, exposing the deception and affirming the loyalty of the divisions' respective commanders.

"Kenma," Sugawara continued, "wasn't Inuoka part of the Nekoma Front?"

"Yeah," Kozume answered, placing Sou in the same civil war militia as Kenma, Kuroo, and Tora. Koshi turned his attention again to Akiteru.

"And Narita is sure Inuoka can be trusted?"

Akiteru nodded. "Apparently when Narita reached out to him, the lieutenant-general answered, 'Shoyo's enemy is my enemy.'"

Suga suddenly smirked and pulled everyone, including Yamaguchi, into a huddle. After several minutes, they broke apart Akiteru and Yamaguchi ecstatic.

"That's brilliant!" Akiteru exclaimed, peering at a clock on the wall. "Kei will be saved well before 11 o'clock!"

"Kuroo's ultimatum is meaningless!" Yamaguchi gleefully appended.

"No," flatly stated Suga, draining the duo's excitement. "Kuroo still has at least one more hostage."

"Gen. Ukai," Kiyoko somberly added. The chief of staff wasn't among the prisoners at the Supreme Court, so he was probably with Kuroo at HQ. Suga frowned silently. Since the start of this chaos, Kuroo had exhibited a sadistic vendetta towards Koshi, and Sugawara still did not know why. Interestingly the video didn't say Suga had to _surrender_ at HQ, just _present himself_ there.

"Everyone, what I am about to say cannot leave this room," Suga spoke. "Kenma, help me get in touch with Kuroo and arrange a ceasefire within the capital and only the capital."

"What are you going to do?" inquired the elder Tsukishima.

"I'm going to call Kuroo's bluff and go to HQ—alone."

"You can't!" objected Akiteru.

"Akiteru, arrange an APC to transport me to HQ once the ceasefire is declared. After I'm gone, you're in charge," Suga directed. Akiteru knew the general would accept no insubordinate backtalk, so against his better judgment, he marched out of the room to fulfill the order.

* * *

By 10:15, a halt to hostilities was declared within the boundaries of Yukigaoka City. Most of the foot soldiers on each side were under the presumptuous impression the other side had decided to forfeit. By 10:20, Suga, disguised as an ordinary enlisted man, climbed into the back of an APC with a smattering of troops sworn to secrecy about their mission. Akiteru gulped as he watched the vehicle turn a corner and disappear.

"Come on," urged Yamaguchi beside him, "let's go back inside." The pair entered the building's lobby, Akiteru repeatedly pondering Suga's intricate and bloodless gambit that should save Tsukki. Still, he had a bad feeling something was about to go horribly wrong.

"You think Shoyo is really dead?" asked Yamaguchi suddenly. Neither of them noticed Kiyoko leaning against a door frame in the lobby.

"He's alive," came Shimizu's voice authoritatively. "You mean you didn't notice?" she added noticing the pair's confusion. "Right before saying Shoyo was dead, Kei mouthed another word. I don't think his captors noticed, or they wouldn't have published the video, but I asked Yui to confirm what it looked like: he said Shoyo is 'not' dead."

In addition to her college activities, Yui Michimiya worked with deaf students as part of an assistance program Shoyo had spearheaded after the war. She was learning to read lips thereby.

As for Akiteru and Yamaguchi, it was almost too good to be true, and they blithely embraced. Kiyoko held off on telling the pair the other bit of good news until Yui finished deciphering the video. Shimizu had to give Kei props, because the man, while appearing to blabber as the gun was stuck to his head, had mouthed what appeared to be some other crucial information. The video quality made it hard to tell at first glance though, but Yui was at work trying to figure what it was Kei was saying. He mentioned Hinata and seemed to form the word "airport," but the meaning remained unclear. For now, the hope was Tsukki would be liberated soon enough and could then relay his message in person.

And then, Kiyoko got another text message from Michimiya. Expecting an update on the decoding, the college student was actually passing on dire news from the internet. Kiyoko's heart sank.

"H-hey, what's wrong?" Akiteru asked the woman whose face had gone pale.

"It's Kitagawa," Kiyoko said, shaking worrisomely. "Their ambassador's been killed. They're threatening retaliation."

* * *

 **I had planned another scene in this chapter, but then it got so long I split it here. Now, remember I said things were going to go "south" for everybody (and that means good guys and bad)? Well, this is only the beginning mwahaha.**

 **Next chapter (which might just be the deleted scene from this chapter): the debut of Inuoka!**


	13. It's Not Over!

**The missing scene from last chapter! Sorry it took longer than anticipated and apologies for the shortness! Enjoy!**

* * *

The longer Lieutenant-General Inuoka tried to maintain a credible smile, the harder his fellow division commander Yamamoto made the task. In what was formerly General Ennoshita's office on the second floor of 3rd Army headquarters, which adjoined Chidoriyama Airfield, Tora guffawed as he slovenly popped the cork off a wine bottle.

"Come on. Take a drink, bruh!" the quisling rejoiced as he poured two glasses.

"No, I must decline," Sou gently objected. Inuoka noticed Tora didn't offer any to the other man in the room, 26th Regiment commander Kentaro Kyotani, who stood at attention beside Sou by the door.

"Don't be silly!" Tora clapped, bounding over to Sou with both glasses and throwing one arm over Inuoka's shoulder. "The gang is back together!" Tora sipped his wineglass.

As Inuoka took the other wineglass (though declining to drink), Tora fortunately didn't notice the sweat accumulating on Sou's brow. Even before Suga contacted General Narita and outlined his insane plan to free the hostages, Inuoka's 8th Division had already encircled the Chidoriyama area and was closing in on the base itself. Pursuant to General Sugawara's orders, Inuoka appeared at the camp gates and duplicitously declared the 8th Division's support for Tora's mutiny. Yamamoto didn't even bat an eye. He immediately invited his wartime buddy inside and fancifully recounted battlefield tales from the civil war.

"I'm surprised you aren't preparing for Narita's assault," Sou prodded. Tora hopped away to the desk, spilling some of his wine before placing the glass on the table. Inuoka set his glass on the desk too and returned to his position beside Kyotani.

"Kuroo will take care of that, and Hinata's dead, so hey! Live a little!" Much to Inuoka's chagrin, Tora was indeed as unenviable a commander as the rumors alleged.

"Even so, I'd be interested to see the hostages," Sou retooled. It was 10:31—less than half an hour until one of the prisoners would be executed.

"That can wait!" Tora pushed back, pounding his fist on the desk out of excitement.

"But I don't think keeping the hostages _here_ is safe," Inuoka pressed. "Sugawara will figure out their location soon enough. They're less likely to think the prisoners are under _my_ jurisdiction."

Tora rubbed his chin, pondering. Military jets sang nearby, shaking the building but not disturbing the room's occupants.

"You know, you may be right," Tora finally said. The jets became louder. "Fine. We'll put those creeps in your control, and _then_ we'll celebrate!" he chimed and hopped up from the desk. A fighter jet's sonic boom from an intolerably low altitude assailed the second-floor office like an earthquake.

"Dang it!" screamed Yamamoto. "I'll have that punk court-martialed!" Another sonic boom blasted the space. Inuoka and Kyotani wobbled, both sensing something was not right. Inuoka knew the jets couldn't be Narita's; Narita wouldn't do anything to jeopardize the hostages or Suga's plan. Tora irksomely skimmed the skies out the room's only window, trying to find the low flyers. He spat grumpily when the landline rang.

"Yo," Tora answered the phone blithely.

"You are so _dead_ right now, Tora!" screeched Kuroo's voice.

"Dude! What freakin' gives?!" Taketora protested. Inuoka cocked an eyebrow, recognizing Kuroo's vocals but unable to decipher his speech. "… Yeah! We _did_!" Tora barked defensively in response.

After the next pause, Tora's grouchy face sank into abject dread. Slowly, his glance fell upon Kyotani. The regiment lieutenant stepped back, as if aware what this was about. Tora's eyes bulged furiously as he set the phone on the desk, Kuroo ranting as if Taketora were still listening.

"You freakin' imbecile," Tora muttered. Suddenly he charged the "mad dog" lieutenant, grappling Kyotani by the lapels and slamming him against the wall next to the door. "You freakin' killed Kitagawa's ambassador!"

A ferocious air-to-ground missile collided with the earth outside, rumbling the entire room and causing Yamamoto to drop Kentaro onto the floor. An air raid siren started up immediately.

"General Yamamoto! General Yamamoto!" pleaded a voice over a radio. Tora snatched up the speaker.

"What was that blast?!"

"Kitagawan aircraft are attacking the base! Kitagawan aircraft are attacking!"

Tora didn't reply, his visage contorting with alarm. He dropped the speaker and scooped up the telephone receiver as more explosions resounded all across the camp.

"Kuroo, you gotta help me. Kitagawa's attacking. Do something!"

"Your mess, your problem."

"Kuroo!"

"Oh, I was advised to tell you: if you survive this, I'll have your discharge papers ready." Kuroo unceremoniously hung up, the dial tone nearly drowned out by the sirens and explosions.

"Kuroo? Kuroo!" Tora squealed before throwing the handset aside. Again his gaze turned on Kyotani who had stood back on his feet. Approaching the lieutenant, Yamamoto swung a punch to Kentaro's jaw, knocking him down once more. Tora withdrew his pistol and aimed it straight at Kentaro's head. "If I see your face again, you're dead. Capiche?"

After a moment, Kyotani scampered out the door like a frightened hound. Tora holstered his gun and then proceeded to dig through Ennoshita's desk drawers, all while Inuoka gazed on calmly. Shutting the door Kyotani left open, Sou watched as Tora stuffed several items from the desk into his pockets, including the corkscrew he'd used to open the wine, a wristwatch that belonged to Chikara, and an extra ammo clip for a pistol.

"What are you doing?" Sou inquired anxiously.

"Screw it. I'm getting out of here," Tora complained. After he finished pilfering, Tora gulped the wine in his glass and marched towards the exit that Sou now stood in front of. He quickly scanned the floor for anything else worth taking.

"No, you're not," Sou calmly replied.

Tora's eyes locked on to his fellow officer holding a pistol aimed at Tora.

"Sou, w-what are you—" Yamamoto stammered.

"It's over, Tora," Inuoka added with a tinge of pity.

"No," a petrified Tora objected. Backing away, he stumbled into and around the desk, then along the wall towards the window. Sou rotated his weapon to keep Yamamoto in his sights. Standing before the window—the view obscured by dust from the chaos outside—Tora huffed heavily, only the rumble of bombs and the rhythmic drone of the siren breaking the silence.

One aerial explosive could be heard beginning its approach to earth scarily nearby.

"No," Tora again groaned before bellowing over the whistling payload: "No, it's not over!"

Instantly a remonstrative boom and fireball consumed Tora's half of the space. A boiling wave hurled Inuoka against the opposing wall. Sou collapsed, dropping his gun as he massaged his left shoulder blade, sore but intact. A smoke cloud lingered where Tora once stood.

Once it dissipated, Sou realized that entire side of the room, floor to ceiling, had been completely obliterated.

* * *

Obtaining the location of the prisoners from a frantic member of Yamamoto's staff, Inuoka trotted confidently through the disorderly camp. He checked his pocket for his emergency flare, which was to be fired as a sign to attack the base in case something unexpected occurred. Sou decided to hold off using it till he knew the welfare of Ennoshita and the others.

The main brunt of the assault had been directed at the airbase itself, and sure enough, Chidoriyama Airfield was all but decimated as the foreign aircraft withdrew. Seeing the gigantic column of smoke created by dozens of small fires, Inuoka suddenly realized Kitagawa had intentionally targeted the missile stockpile intended to be decommissioned after signing the arms deal with Haikyu—the same stockpile from which the mutineers got the rockets that were fired at the Black Crow Hotel. Ironically Yamamoto's brazen attempt to assassinate Hinata merely exposed his location.

At last, Sou located the igloo-shaped bunker inside which were supposedly the prisoners. The two frazzled entrance guards from Kyotani's 26th Regiment heeded the superior officer's request for access. Inuoka ordered the guard inside the bunker to go with the two personnel outside and assist in the cleanup, asserting he himself would take charge of the hostages. Sou offered to hold the soldier's assault rifle in the meantime, which the grunt dutifully left in Inuoka's care. Once alone, Sou knelt beside an incredulous Ennoshita.

"Sou, are you kidding me?" Chikara mumbled.

"Wait. I'm getting you out of here," Inuoka whispered, undoing the bindings on Ennoshita's wrists before releasing Chief of Police Ikejiri.

"Where's the foreign minister?" Inuoka asked, noting that Kei was not in the room. Ennoshita's face went pale.

"Kyotani came and took him," he said.

* * *

 **Mwahaha.**

 **As I think about it, I might have to split the next chapter up too. I have three scenes in mind for it, but I'm not sure I want to scrunch them all together.**

 **But believe me: things are still going to get even worse. Stay tuned and check my profile page for publishing updates!**


	14. The Battle of Chidoriyama

**Nice long chapter for everybody! I was trying to make the chapters shorter for a while, to be more "digestible," but for the amount of action and intrigue, it needed its due, so there you have it. We're more than 2/3 of the way done at this point too! Enjoy!**

* * *

General Kuroo ruffled his fingertips through his disheveled hair, mashing his teeth, his face pressed against Ukai's desk. Less than an hour ago, Tetsuro was sure he'd finally had Sugawara in his clutches. Now, with Kitagawa's bombing of Chidoriyama, it appeared Koshi once again had been the one to dupe Kuroo.

No, Sugawara had no intention of surrendering, he deduced. The ceasefire in the capital, allegedly to allow Suga to present himself at Army HQ, was part of a larger ruse.

11th Division commander Takanobu Aone stood dutifully opposite the griping Kuroo, awaiting any further directive from his superior. Seated on the floor beside Aone was General Ukai, his wrists bound behind his back, brought into the room moments earlier for Kuroo to gloat. The detainee glared dryly at the seething officer in his chair.

"Now you see it's lost?" Keishin blurted.

His spine snapping straight up, Kuroo glared at the maker of the insolent remark. Keishin didn't flinch as the other man stomped around and towered above. Kuroo's hand hovered over his holstered handgun, but he didn't draw it.

"Why don't you learn your place, old man?" Kuroo smirked showily. Keishin's visage didn't alter. "You see, I will beat Suga no matter what." Kuroo moseyed away genteelly.

"What's your beef with Suga anyway?" questioned Ukai.

Kuroo blinked coyly. "None of your business, geezer."

Keishin was not deterred. It was time to reveal his trump card, however pointless it might be. "You know, I was about to appoint a deputy chief of staff when this whole mess started," Ukai began, referencing the vacancy that would have specified Ukai's successor in event of incapacitation.

Kuroo cocked an eyebrow, feigning intrigue. Ukai pressed on:

"I invited Suga out to dinner when he was in Yukigaoka City awhile back and offered him the job."

"And he said yes, but you didn't make it official. Too bad," Kuroo tersely dismissed.

"He said _no_ ," Ukai answered. Kuroo's brow wrinkled. "Suga said he felt like his obligation was to the soldiers on the ground and that he unfairly got the credit for defeating Ushiwaka. But he did recommend I consider another candidate. Guess who?"

Kuroo glowered at the Army chief of staff, daring him to finish talking.

" _You_."

Aone peered tensely at Ukai, then at the speechless Kuroo. Tetsuro stared for several seconds until, at last, he cackled.

The giggling rattled the room, leading Ukai to think the man had gone insane. Aone stolidly tracked his boss with his eyes as the man, holding his gut, wandered back behind the desk and supported himself on the table with his palm. After what seemed like a minute, Kuroo finally gained control of himself. He drew his handgun, momentarily shook the barrel in Ukai's direction, and then, pointing the gun at the ceiling, fired a shot into the plaster.

"Don't make me laugh," Kuroo flatly requested with a wide grin. "Aone, that Chinook is ready, right? Code Orange."

Aone's eyebrow-less forehead winced, the officer neither saluting nor objecting. Even as Kuroo explained "Code Orange" earlier, the code phrase for the Chinook's mission, Aone felt it a futile effort unlikely to change the outcome of the coup. He honestly hadn't expected Kuroo to initiate it, and by this point, privately Aone was questioning the rationality of continuing to fight himself.

Receiving no response from the officer, Kuroo spitefully glared into the other man's pupils.

"No second thoughts, right?" he intimated. Aone jolted. "The people of Dateko will get relief once this whole matter has been cleaned up, I promise—and I don't think after all this Hinata's lackeys will lend a hand to your tribe anymore," Kuroo threatened.

The poverty-stricken, seminomadic Dateko tribes lived in the far southeast reaches of Haikyu. Aone—one of his people's few representatives with a position of power after the war—mingled well with the quirky President Hinata who defied traditional ethnic lines, but political machinations had so far blocked federal aid packages to the struggling region. The promise of quicker assistance from Kuroo and his shadowy benefactor had lured Takanobu into betraying Hinata, a move he secretly regretted every second.

"And if you are having second thoughts,"—Kuroo now pointed his gun at Aone—"don't expect _us_ to help your people either."

Aone stared at the floor, beginning to sweat. Part of him hoped Hinata was alive and somewhere safe out of the country, where he could feel better about partaking in this increasingly bloody ordeal—including the action he was about to take.

"I'm waiting," Kuroo impatiently continued.

Aone's neck snapped upright to face the gun. Silently, he saluted and marched out of the room to send the chopper on its assigned task. Ukai, noting Aone's hesitation, glanced at the man's departure and then at Kuroo.

"What's Code Orange?"

Kuroo beamed. "Vengeance."

* * *

Tsukishima limped through the grounds of the Chidoriyama camp, tugged by the wrist of the obviously irate Lt. Kyotani who'd arrested him earlier that day. Kei struggled against the inhuman grip on his wrist, his resistance not fazing Kentaro. Through the blur of his glasses-less vision, he could make out what was probably the main gate of the camp towards which they were marching. Tsukishima wanted to cry. He was undoubtedly being taken somewhere secluded to be finished off.

"Lt. Kyotani!" called a saluting NCO from the lieutenant's regiment stationed at the gate.

"Move!" Kyotani barked, shimmying itinerantly around the closed gate arm. Kei's head smacked unceremoniously against the tip of the red-and-white-striped gate arm, freeing him from Kyotani's grip. Kei tumbled flat onto his back. Before he could orient himself enough to think to run though, Kyotani nabbed him again and maneuvered the hostage around the gate arm. Kei fought even harder, but the grip reminiscent of a feral animal wouldn't budge. The perplexed NCO and other gate guards stared at their commander marching away from the camp with what appeared to be one of the prisoners. It was unseemly for the commander to disappear right after the Kitagawan air raid, and the NCO wondered why his superior didn't order a subordinate to execute the hostage, if that was the intention.

Halting outside the gate, the stout commandant glanced to and fro, his prisoner stumbling into his hamstring and collapsing, his arm held erect in Mad Dog's grip. Kyotani couldn't see Inuoka's soldiers, a vexing but trivial point. He could hear Kei groveling beside him. Kyotani wanted to shoot Kei for it, but that wasn't the reason he'd taken the hostage. Rather, after being ordered off the premises by the outraged Tora, Kyotani had decided to make a break for it, using Tsukishima as a bargaining chip at best and human shield at worst.

Just then, what sounded like a firework soared into the sky from somewhere inside the camp. Kyotani spun fast enough to see a flash in the air. A flare? What for? Who? His instincts kicked in as he spun around again to face the bushy terrain around the camp entrance took, drawing his handgun in anticipation of an as-yet unseen threat. Rustling could be heard in the foliage until emerging almost simultaneously was a score of soldiers from Inuoka's 8th Division. Their assault rifles were homed in on Kyotani and the personnel inside the gate. Kyotani quickly tugged Kei upright and slammed the man against his chest for a shield. All Kei could discern was an ever-growing mass of infantrymen stepping closer and closer. That flare was a signal, Kyotani realized, and given the sudden behavior of Inuoka's men, the flare could only have been launched by one person.

The guards drew their weapons and darted for cover but were outnumbered and also outgunned as the bombing had damaged the machinegun position. Steadily stepping backwards, Kyotani's lower back collided with the gate arm, which he sidestepped around holding Tsukishima and found himself again inside the most likely surrounded camp. Most of the carefully advancing soldiers eyed the lieutenant and his hostage, having been instructed that Kei had to be rescued alive.

"Drop your weapons now and free the hostage," ordered the enemy platoon leader.

"Fire!" screamed Kyotani who released two rounds from his handgun. The attack forced the platoon to dash for cover positions and return fire, in turn forcing the bewildered guards to shoot back as well.

Inuoka's soldiers were intentionally avoiding Kentaro, so Kyotani took the chance to retreat deeper into the facility, hustling Kei alongside him. Once away from the gate, Kentaro ducked and peered around a building, trying to figure out his next option.

Just then, he spotted, sneaking along a wall of a field office trailer, Inuoka, Ennoshita, and Ikejiri—Gen. Ennoshita wielding an assault rifle. Kyotani snarled. Inuoka peered through a window on the office building to check the structure was empty and then signaled his cohorts before all three slinked into the block.

Inuoka with his issued handgun, an unarmed Ikejiri, and Ennoshita using the assault rifle they conned away from the soldier at the pillbox, pattered through the front room of the trailer and plopped into the back office. Shooting could be heard, suggesting the base's defenders were unfortunately not going quietly.

"We'll wait it out here if we can," Inuoka hummed. The police chief Hayato checked the deadbolt on the backdoor was secure and operable, preventing any unauthorized entry but also enabling an escape route if need be. Either way, they weren't safe until the camp was liberated.

Then the doorway they'd entered by swung open, banging fiercely against the wooden wall of the trailer. Peeking at the intruder through the doorway from the second room, Inuoka's heart stopped: Kyotani, with Tsukishima firmly in hand, towered in front of the entrance, his gun was pointed directly through the adjoining threshold.

Inuoka barely dodged the bullet fired at him. Ennoshita slammed himself against the wall on the other side of the door from Sou while Hayato crept hastily beside Inuoka. Wrapping the end of his shoe around a table leg, Kyotani flipped a table onto its side and dived behind it for cover. Inuoka reappeared in the doorway and fired, his bullet ricocheting off the table.

Kei, abandoned when Kyotani dove behind the table, rapidly decided to create some distance between him and Mad Dog. Kentaro was too near the entrance for Kei to escape the building, so he began to crawl towards the farthest corner of the room. Spotting this, Kyotani lunged for Kei, clasping his sprained ankle and dragging him towards the table. Inuoka emerged again and fired. The bullet struck Kyotani in the clavicle, causing him to lose Kei's grip but not seeming to abate him. Kyotani returned fire, the shot ricocheting off the threshold as Sou dived for cover. Ennoshita fired the assault rifle, striking Kyotani two times, but like a wounded beast, the lieutenant fired back, forcing Ennoshita to hide. Inuoka emerged again, this time striking Kentaro in the abdomen. Still, the immortal returned fire. This bullet clipped the edge of the threshold, showering Inuoka's face with splinters. Sou prepared to peek around again when a glob of blood dripped from his cheek to the floorboards, alerting him to the fact the bullet had grazed his face.

Kei tried crawling away once more, ignored by Kyotani this time. Instead of trying to scramble behind the table for cover, Mad Dog ripped a grenade from his belt and tossed the explosive into the adjacent room.

"Grenade!" Ennoshita's shrill voice squealed. The object bounced out of Kyotani's view detonated with a noise that almost made Kei's heart leap from his chest. The adjoining room was filled with smoke and silence.

Kyotani spat, unconcerned his spittle was mixed with blood. He forced himself with a grunt to stand on both feet and then marched towards the crawling Kei. Kentaro lifted the pathetic prisoner by the back of his shirt collar and aimed his gun right at Kei's forehead. Now Kyotani didn't care about having a human shield; he just wanted to be done with this man.

Before he could pull the trigger, a spray of automatic assault rifle ammunition sputtered from the smoke-filled room next door. Kyotani dropped Tsukishima, jittering from the dozen bullet impacts. His body first seeming to hesitate over whether or not to die, finally Mad Dog tilted forward and plodded facedown, his body partly thudding atop a shivering, fetal Kei.

A moment later, holding an assault rifle, his eyes bloodshot from the suffocating smoke, Inuoka whisked through the threshold, huffing noticeably, the AR barrel aimed at Kyotani's body as if prepared for him to rise as a zombie. Hayato emerged next holding Inuoka's pistol. With Inuoka covering, the latter crouched beside Tsukishima and checked the foreign minister for injuries before wrangling him out from beneath Kyotani's corpse. Kei was too traumatized to open his eyes and face his saviors. Inuoka gulped. The man whom Gen. Narita said might know for certain where the president was now appeared potentially too shaken up to relay that information.

Both Hayato and Sou reflexively flinched when more soldiers appeared in the entryway from which Kyotani had invaded.

"General!" cried one of Inuoka's officers now standing in the space. Sou gaped and almost wanted to cry. "We had some resistance initially, but the enemy has surrendered. How are the hostages?" The officer recognized the shuddering lump that was Tsukishima beside Tokonami's crouching police chief giving first aid. At the same time, the officer realized both Hayato and Sou were drenched in a significant amount of blood that didn't appear to be theirs. "Where's Gen. Ennoshita?" the officer asked warily.

Inuoka smacked his lips, trying not to sniffle, though made difficult by the lingering smoke. "The general…is a hero." He jerked his head away, unwillingly replaying in his head the image of Chikara diving atop the grenade before the device exploded.

"The tunnel…," Kei mumbled, breaking Inuoka from his mind. All attention turned to Tsukishima, quivering less but eyes still shut. "Hinata's…in the tunnels…to the airport…. He's at the airport." His fetal pose tightened just as medics descended upon the man and took over care from Hayato.

"Tunnels? Airport?" Ikejiri questioned.

"They must be Ushiwaka's tunnels," Inuoka surmised. Sugawara must have had a hunch about this, since in addition to liberating Chidoriyama, he had apparently ordered Narita to ensure the public airport was under government control too.

"Where would we find an entrance?" Hayato inquired, not bothering to question the legendary labyrinth's existence at this moment.

Inuoka scowled. "Unfortunately, the one who probably knows that…is Gen. Ennoshita."

* * *

Kuroo peered past the curtains of Ukai's upper-story office at the Chinook lifting off from the camp. In a few moments, it swiveled around and darted away in a north-northeasterly direction. Code Orange was ago.

Before Kuroo could even think about anything else, the desk phone rang. Ukai, still bound and seated on the floor, peered nonchalantly as Kuroo answered it.

"What is it?" he scoffed, presuming it was one of his staffers.

"Sir, Gen. Sugawara is at the gates," came the staffer's reply.

"What?!" cried Tetsuro.

"He's asking to meet with you."

* * *

 **At last! Suga confronts Kuroo! What about Aone? And Ukai? And that chopper? And we're not done in the city of Tokonami just yet either.**

 **And the body count mounts again. Will it mount some more? Tehehe...**

 **Hang in there, everyone!**


	15. The Revenge of Kuroo

**On at least three occasions, I tried writing this chapter ahead of time because it's such a critical moment, but I was never satisfied with any draft of it. But now this version is satisfying to me and the best one I came up with. Glad I got a chance to use Aone the way I did too. I also name-dropped a few characters who've not appeared in the story for your enjoyment.**

* * *

What was the point in fighting anymore?, Aone began to wonder. What was the point in fighting? They had lost the support of the police, and the coup's allies in both the far east and far west had been crushed. Judging from the abrasive exchanges between Kuroo and the coup's shadowy boss, Aone expected no more help from their alleged benefactor either. Takanobu had joined the coup to help his suffering people, but truly all seemed meaningless.

Aone tasked an implacably seditious subordinate with leading the modified Chinook on its top secret, nigh-suicidal mission. After reluctantly issuing the takeoff order, the lieutenant-general skulked away to a strategizing room and examined a map charting troop positions around the time of the ceasefire an hour ago. More loyalist troops had massed on the northeast and southeast approaches. Aone's 11th Division was spread too thin to effectively resist once—if—fighting resumed. Iwaizumi's 1st and Kindaichi's 5th divisions had withdrawn to a tight perimeter around the presidential estate, likely on the overriding orders of the coup's leader.

Then Aone's adjutant appeared and announced that, against all likelihood, Sugawara had surrendered at the base's front gates. That was how the aide described it, but it was nothing so defeatist. There was no forfeit implied by either side. Aone quickly marched back to the room where he'd left Kuroo and the bound Ukai. En route, he encountered a squadron of his own soldiers escorting Suga through the halls. Koshi's eyes momentarily made contact with Aone's, his expression that of a dry contempt. Aone said nothing and followed the escort to Kuroo's room.

Inside what was formerly Ukai's office, Kuroo's buttocks leaned on the desk with the curtains shut. Ukai languished against the wall to Kuroo's left in the same place as earlier. A motley of additional soldiers filtered into the space after Suga and Aone. In the suddenly cramped quarters, Takanobu held up behind Suga's left, unable to maneuver towards Kuroo's half of the room.

"I can't believe you actually showed up," Kuroo teased. Suga took note of the multiple empty beer bottles littering the floor.

"I said I would," Koshi responded frankly. Kuroo seemed not to hear it.

"…To think you actually conned Kitagawa into attacking Tora. How'd you do it? You assassinate the ambassador and framed us?" Already aware of the bombing of Chidoriyama, Suga jolted at the uncouth accusation. Koshi had to stay calm though. He desperately needed to know from whence all this hatred stemmed.

"Because of you, I almost launched a military offensive against a town filled solely with civilians. You're willing to sacrifice hundreds of innocents just to distract me from your pithy scheme?"

Aone twitched. This was the first he'd heard of the claim Suga was making.

"And sully that duplicitous reputation of yours!" Kuroo boasted. "The whole town's filled with Ushiwaka holdouts anyway. They should have died 18 months ago—if you hadn't been so self-serving."

Suga scowled. If Kuroo was implying that his, Asahi's, and Issei Ukai's efforts to restrain rebel soldiers from exacting vengeance on Ushiwaka's supporters was "self-serving," then Koshi wasn't sure what the point of this conversation was. Though abuses unavoidably occurred, the very fact a full-scale massacre did not take place in Shiratorizawa was often credited, with varying degrees of accuracy, to Koshi's leadership.

Nevertheless, some still alleged both the subsequent Goshiki and Tendo uprisings would never have occurred if their namesake leaders had been cut down in cold blood the same day as their boss. Perhaps, Suga wondered, that was one of Kuroo's gripes too.

He took a poignant glance at Ukai, mentally telling the detained general he now retracted his prior endorsement of Kuroo for deputy chief of staff. Keishin acknowledged what Suga was thinking with a nod—and hoped his own visage didn't betray that he'd actually spilled the beans to Kuroo.

"Instead," Kuroo continued, "you act like the hero while pretending you have no blood on your hands. Disgusting."

"That's it? You blame me for the mutinies the past year and a half?"

Kuroo giggled, presuming Suga was intentionally dodging the point

"You won't admit it, will you? Are you afraid all your darling soldiers won't love you anymore?"

To Suga too, Kuroo seemed to be simply beating around the bush. He wracked his brain hard to deduce what Tetsuro was getting at, replaying everything about the fateful Battle of Shiratorizawa. He recalled the night before the attack, when the pair attempted to construct a joint offensive only to irreconcilably disagree on tactics. Suga wanted Kuroo's assistance in ambushing the fortified, hilltop town from the lightly defended and rocky north, but Tetsuro insisted on a swift, frontal assault across the southern plains before the defenders dug in. They parted ways to carry out separate, uncoordinated assaults. When Karasuno's troops began trekking through the northern hills shortly before dawn, Suga was astonished to learn the Nekoma Resistance Front had already begun their attack and were, as the reports insinuated, being slaughtered. Koshi felt sick most of the day, urging his ad hoc regiments onward, praying they would get to their goal that much sooner to end the useless bloodletting of Kuroo's comrades. Miraculously, the Karasuno force did reach Shiratorizawa a few hours quicker than expected—and found that the beleaguered Ushijima had already deployed his last troops to fight Kuroo's forces. The battle then ended quite anticlimactically. Ushiwaka was ambushed practically unguarded and killed in a gunfight. Once he died, most of the defenders routed and fled.

Thereafter, as Koshi inwardly mourned the nearly 700 casualties suffered by Nekoma, Suga was hailed as the hero of Shiratorizawa and the war, with barely a handful of deaths on the Karasuno side. Despite the praise, Suga found that day to be anything but heroic.

"Kuroo, I'm sorry for what happened to your forces that day. I guess, truthfully, if you hadn't drawn the defenders to the south, things wouldn't have gone as smoothly as they did for us."

"Like you didn't know," Kuroo chuckled.

"What do you mean? What do you want me to say?! That I let your troops get slaughtered so Karasuno could get the glory?!"

"There, you said it," Kuroo stated with a way-too-cathartic grin.

Suga paused a long time. The room was dead silent, all bystanders captivated even as the conversation wasn't fully comprehensible.

"It all went too smoothly for you," Tetsuro resumed. "You knew what would happen when I attacked the walls. I lost a lot of good comrades that day: Shohei, Nobu, Yaku…. We almost had a breakthrough though; we'd had pierced their right flank and were flooding into the city. And then you magically appear like some thief and steal our prize and make Karasuno out to be the great saviors and leaders of the new world order. It makes me so sick, Suga!"

Suga gaped, and he wasn't the only one: Aone and Ukai were equally flabbergasted. A thousand thoughts swirled like a tempest in Koshi's mind, trying to figure out what to say: "I'm not responsible for your decision-making, "I tried to save your men," or even "I told you so"—but he realized it was pointless. Kuroo's animosity was irrational and wouldn't be instantly soothed by pointing that out.

"Nekoma should have been the ones in charge of this country, and you should be some second-rate corporal on rearguard duty. Why continue to live this lie that you're some great, noble genius, you conniving fink? Give up, and I'll set up some nice retirement package for you in exile. I mean, why not? The president and vice-president are dead. There's no one left to defend unless you want to throw away your friends' lives without a cause." To prove the point, he drew his gun and aimed it at Ukai. Keishin's countenance stayed bravely stolid. "Seriously, what is there to keep fighting for?"

Strangely, Kuroo's final question cut to Aone's heart more than Suga's.

As for Koshi, his stomach churned, worse at this moment than it had outside Shiratorizawa 18 months ago today. However, although Koshi may not have won the civil war by sheer ingenuity as the myths alleged, Kuroo was wrong today as he was back then: that Suga had nothing to fight for.

Suga chuckled—for effect, not out of sincerity.

"Even if there were nothing to keep fighting for, there's no reason to surrender. Since our ceasefire, Kinoshita's men have been filing into the city and these troops you claim to lead have been surrendering like flies, thinking they've already lost. They might already have this camp surrounded." It wasn't entirely an untruth but an exaggeration; and judging from Kuroo's mental state, Suga expected his foe to take this news a lot worse than it actually was.

With a frown Tetsuro sheathed his pistol and marched towards Suga, undoing a couple of buttons of his uniform. The general glided past Koshi while reaching inside the undone uniform. And then, once he was behind Suga, Kuroo yanked a polygonal block of C4 attached to the inside of his outfit with wire. Kuroo flung the wire around Koshi's neck and smacked the explosive itself against Sugawara's heart.

"Doesn't matter," Kuroo slithered. "I planned for every eventuality."

Suga's guards stumbled towards the door upon spotting the charge. Aone's heart raced, only now realizing that Kuroo hadn't put the pack of C4 on the Chinook like he assumed but had attached it to his own body as his final contingency against Koshi Sugawara.

Choking, Koshi wrestled against the wire jabbing his throat, sweat quickly pooling on his face.

"It's over, Suga."

Suga had no backup plan. No, he hadn't fully measured the depths of Kuroo's insanity and depravity. Kuroo had at last won.

As Tetsuro reached into his pocket for the detonator, one person charged him from the general's blind spot. Before the single-minded Kuroo realized what was happening, Aone had drawn a knife, grappled Tetsuro from behind, and sliced the blade cleanly across the suicidal officer's neck. Kuroo spluttered blood like motor oil then fell like a sack of bricks, the detonator rolling from his hand.

The wire around his neck tugged Koshi to the floor as well. Unsure what had happened, he remained supine until Aone extricated his throat. Koshi hopped to his feet and faced his unexpected savior sternly. Aone bowed deeply at the waist, a Dateko cultural custom.

"General Sugawara," Aone began, "please accept the 11th Division's surrender. I will order my troops to stand down at once."

Slightly frazzled, Suga pat the bowing man on the shoulder. He inhaled deeply and bowed halfway in return—not as deeply as his counterpart per Dateko custom—to reciprocate the show of respect.

"When I saw you in the hallway, Aone," Suga said after the two men straightened up, "you looked on the verge of breaking, and I did in fact think, whatever happened in this room, you could very well be my only salvation." Suga beamed. "Also, please talk more. I forgot you were there!"

Aone blushed slightly. Within minutes, Ukai was freed, the base's defenders had forfeited, and Suga prepared to radio Akiteru at HBC that all was well. At the first mention of the Haikyu Broadcasting Corporation though, Aone flinched.

He had forgotten about the Chinook that right now should be hovering over HBC.

* * *

 **Next chapter: we introduce Saeko (she wasn't in my original outline, but it's been bothering me that I left her out and I found where I can fit her in pretty seamlessly), and Kuroo gets his revenge in death if not in life. Somebody will die next chapter, but part of me is still debating who it really should be.**

 **And whatever _did_ happen to Shoyo and Hitoka anyway?**


	16. From the Grave

**First** **, there is no excuse for my ineptitude when it comes to military rotorcraft. I knew what a Chinook was, and yet somehow it didn't really occur to me you wouldn't use a Chinook for the purposes I intended to use it! Later I might rewrite earlier chapters to remove references to a Chinook, but for now, let it be known that the helicopter dispatched by Kuroo is heretofore a "modified Chinook." Because I can.**

 **Second, I _did_ plan to have Hinata in this chapter, but I'm afraid the dramatic pendulum militated against that. Sorry. However, that's not to say there isn't progress on Hinata's predicament...**

 **Third, I also said somebody was going to die. To be honest, when I said that, that was only 90% certain. I knew, given the flow and content of this chapter, I wanted there to be a "sacrifice," but I hadn't settled on a satisfyingly poetic reason for any of my several "potential victims" to perish. As such, there was always a 5% chance _nobody_ would die, but also a 5% chance that this chapter would turn out far more devastating than merely, "somebody dies."**

 **To my own surprise even, as I reworked and finally wrote the chapter, I went with one of the 5%s-but you'll have to read on to find out which one.**

* * *

Inuoka sullenly took in the disintegrated corner of what used to be 3rd Army's operational headquarters. Soldiers were rescuing survivors from the collapsed half of the structure while the deceased were lined up. Sou fixated on Gen. Ennoshita's former office, partially exposed to the open air due to the adjacent bomb hit; he was genuinely surprised he had survived the impact. Tora presumably hadn't, though his corpse had not turned up.

He didn't notice his newfound assistant, Hayato Ikejiri, wander over. The police chief said nothing, sensing the 8th Division commander was in deep thought.

Then one of Sou's subordinates dashed over to the pair. "Lieutenant-General, we found something you should see!" He hurriedly waved Inuoka over to the HQ debris.

Inuoka gaped when he beheld the sight. The explosion and collapse combined had punctured the floorboards of first-story room, revealing a well-concealed vertical shaft into the earth beneath. Curious soldiers had already plopped inside and confirmed it was part of a tunnel leading seemingly far into the distance.

"Is this one of Ushiwaka's?" Ikejiri posed. "Lieutenant-General, sir, we can use this to search for Hinata."

Inuoka might ordinarily have laughed at the irony; Ennoshita probably knew about this passageway, and it was serendipitous they had uncovered it by accident after the general's sacrifice. The airport—Hinata's purported destination—had been secured, but there was no guarantee the at least two-year-old shafts were intact all the way to the civil aerodrome. Gen. Narita and everyone in charge of Hinata's salvation were praying for a way to go to him instead of waiting for the president to come to them.

But Inuoka wasn't thrilled by this new chance at all.

"Ready a squad to begin searching. I'll lead," Sou declared. An officer saluted and departed to round up a dependable squadron of cadets. The exploration team was ready in no time, and Sou entered first, carefully climbing into the thin shaft using the rock walls as support. At the bottom he shined his flashlight into the impenetrable darkness. He glanced skyward, past the first soldier making his way into the abyss; rusted protrusions in the wall proved there was once was a ladder, probably siphoned when the hole was sealed. Above the shaft, Inuoka could see the sky, though before the bomb blast the room had been directly below Gen. Ennoshita's office.

It was insane, Inuoka tried to reassure himself, but he couldn't rid his mind of the fact they had yet to locate Taketora Yamamoto's body.

* * *

A chopper carrying an assortment of rescued Karasuno dignitaries appeared on the horizon from the roof of Haikyu Broadcasting Corporation's downtown station. Awaiting its touchdown were Col. Akiteru Tsukishima and Tadashi Yamaguchi, the latter having entrusted the airwaves to the career anchors. No official word from Sugawara or Narita had come before they ventured to the roof to receive their guests, among which was reportedly the commander of the Haikyu military's 4th Division from Sugawara's 1st Army.

As the helicopter appeared over HBC's helipad (intended normally for only news choppers), Kiyoko and Yui hastily emerged from the door leading into the fire escape stairwell.

"Col. Tsukishima," Kiyoko huffed, "Narita called. Chidoriyama is free. Your brother's safe."

The words were an instant relief for the pair already on the roof. They leapt for joy. As the chopper came down, Kenma also skulked out of the stairwell past Michimiya. From the roof, Akiteru could see the 4th Division chief, Saeko Tanaka, heedlessly hanging off the helicopter's skid, her blonde hair flapping amidst the rotors' turbulence.

"Yo! Akiteru!" Lt.-Gen. Tanaka wailed. She hopped onto the roof before the machine completely touched down and trooped through the gust towards Col. Tsukishima. The girl knew the boy well from the civil war and from his omnipresence at Suga's side by virtue of leading of the headquarters guards detachment. Suddenly she took all by surprise by wrapping Akiteru's neck in a half-nelson and giving him a soft noogie. Akiteru didn't fight it, knowing to do so was pointless; this woman always made sure she got her way.

"All right! What's been happening here?" she spouted, releasing the colonel.

Before Akiteru could reply, another figure stampeded off the chopper towards Kenma.

"You!" vigorously roared Ryunosuke Tanaka, pointing an accusative finger at Kozume. Kenma winced as Ryu clasped his lapels. "I have half a mind—!"

Saeko issued a swift kick to the insides of Ryu's knees, causing the interior minister to buckle and release the police commander.

"At least you _admit_ you have half a mind!" she raucously guffawed. Next off the chopper was the education minister, Ittetsu Takeda, one of the first to be taken into custody and fully relieved to see freedom again. He wobbled as he tried to get used to being on solid ground again. Behind him stepped off two other rescued hostages, agriculture minister Makoto Shimada and trade minister Yusuke Takinoue, who stretched achingly.

As Ryu hopped to his feet and prepared to show his sister up, Saeko rammed a vertical finger in front of his face to stifle him. "I showed you what Kenma did," she censured, referring to the various videos of Kenma's subjugation of Kotaro Bokuto. "He's on our side now."

"But this guy's the reason Asahi and Daichi are dead!" Ryu fiercely insisted. Akiteru wriggled between the sparring siblings to shove them apart.

"And we'll let Hinata decide his fate," he sternly arbitrated. Kenma's chin sank at the mention of Shoyo; he loathed the thought of seeing his friend after all this.

"Where _is_ Hinata anyway?" queried Takeda.

Akiteru glanced at Ittetsu and then at Kiyoko and Yui, one of whom he hoped had an update on that loose end. Kiyoko nodded to Tsukishima before speaking.

"Apparently he hid in Ushiwaka's tunnels in Tokonami. General Narita is looking for him. The assumption is he's OK though." There was a sigh of relief from Yamaguchi.

"So, who's acting as president until we find him?" Takeda pointedly asked. "Kageyama?" Akiteru frowned, while Yamaguchi and Kenma looked away. Ryu, Saeko, Takeda—plus Shimada and Takinoue joining the crowd—cocked their eyebrows. Yui peered at Kiyoko, who inhaled before answering on everyone's behalf.

"According to Kenma, both Kageyama and Oikawa are at the presidential estate." The implication wasn't lost on the new arrivals.

"I'll pummel the weasel," Ryu glowered, thinking specifically of the ex-Seijoh politician Kageyama.

"Well, next in line would be the foreign minister, so Tsukishima?" Takeda continued. Kei's brother shook his head. He didn't know his younger sibling's condition but figured it was out of the question for the moment. Takeda then glanced at the interior minister, Ryu.

"Then that means the acting presidency would fall on Tanaka."

A tenseness overcame everyone except Yui, who glanced side-to-side trying to figure why everybody suddenly seemed so nervous. All eyes cautiously homed on the legendarily undependable interior minister. Ryu stared blankly at Takeda who alone seemed to have faith that "the office would shape the man."

At last Tanaka beamed, almost sinisterly: "Really? _I'm_ in charge?"

Saeko darted between her brother and Takeda.

"And if something happens to my brother, who's next?" she questioned far too urgently and excitedly.

"Hey!" reacted Ryu, presupposing her sister's scheme. "That's _treason_!"

Akiteru promptly shot a hand into the air. "I nominate Takeda!"

"What?!"

"I second that," acclaimed Saeko.

"Me too," added Kiyoko.

"Kiyoko! How could you?!"

"Us too," Shimada and Takinoue dryly appended. Tanaka's bullying gaze fell on the last abstainer, Yamaguchi.

"Et tu, Yamaguchi?"

Tadashi squirmed, starting to sweat; avoiding eye contact with Ryu, he raised a hand shakily. "Sorry," he simply whimpered.

Ryu gaped before irately noticing out the corner of his eye that Kenma had also silently raised his hand. "Put your hand down! You don't get a vote!"

Ignoring her sibling, Saeko grabbed one of Ittetsu's wrists and yanked his arm skyward. "Then it's official! By popular acclaim, Takeda is Acting President!" Ittetsu gawped, everything having happened almost too quickly for him to comprehend.

"What's your first order of business, Mr. President?" Akiteru eagerly inquired.

Takeda momentarily stammered, but then recalled the reason they had stopped by HBC in the first place.

"Oh! We should leave here and go somewhere more secure. Sakanoshita's been recaptured, so we'll move there." The northern Sakanoshita district included a barracks that Saeko's 4th Division had liberated about an hour ago.

"Akiteru, you come," Saeko commanded. "You too, Shimizu."

"Want to join us, Yui?" Kiyoko asked. Michimiya nodded with a grin, pleased she was being treated among the elites even if she had no true say.

Akiteru glanced at Tadashi. "You coming also?"

Tadashi thought about the station running without him but soon settled on the fact that operations were already in good hands.

"Sure!" he replied. "Uh, let me call downstairs." He wandered away to phone a producer on his cell to advise of his departure.

"Let's get moving!" Ittetsu called before proceeding back to the chopper. Shimada had already embarked and strapped himself in, and Takinoue was now climbing into the transport. Saeko waved over the rest of the gang and too marched to the chopper, its propellers starting up again.

With no inclination to move right this minute, meanwhile, the downtrodden Ryunosuke Tanaka kneeled in dejection.

"Why?" he mumbled. "I was president for ten seconds, and my dearest friends stage a coup?!" Standing behind him, Kenma couldn't help but feel sorry for his boss. Ryu sniffled melodramatically, prompting Kozume to attempt to console him.

"Um, m-maybe this is why nobody voted for you." He balked upon realizing his statement wasn't comforting at all.

"Shut up! I don't want to hear that from you!" Ryu yelled as if suddenly remembering his feud with the police commander.

Only then did Kenma notice another helicopter that was now hovering off the rooftop. He took note that it appeared to be a converted Chinook, bearing a machinegun mount and a pair of side rocket launchers. Takeda was about to board their transport helicopter when he too noticed the new arrival. Saeko squinted at the craft, which she did not request. Ryu stood and gawked at the chopper, once again forgetting his beef with Kenma. Yui and Kiyoko, both near the fire escape door, peered at the craft too. Farther afield, Akiteru sauntered over to Yamaguchi who hung up from talking to the production manager.

Then, as if pleased to have everyone's attention, the Chinook's sidearm missiles let loose. Both projectiles slammed into the frame of the grounded copter, bursting it into flames amidst agonizing screams. Bodies of soldiers and the helicopter's crew were thrown around. Takeda himself was hurled from the craft and plodded on his back on the floor. Saeko hit the deck as fiery debris scattered in all directions. Showered by the debris, Yamaguchi and Akiteru were knocked by surprise when a large chunk of sheet metal from the copter's outer layer clanged in front of them, the gigantic piece now providing improvised cover. Kenma, Ryu, Kiyoko, and Yui shut their eyes and held up their arms instinctively for protection but were far enough away to be clear of most of the scattering detritus.

Once it seemed safe, Saeko inched an eye open. Their escape helicopter was smoldering, and Takeda's outstretched body sprawled languidly halfway between her and the burning mess. Inside the wreck, Takinoue's bloodcurdling shrieks assailed the air while no sound came from Shimada.

"Inside!" screamed Saeko. Kiyoko and Yui rapidly ducked in the stairwell. Saeko dashed to the doorway, attracting machinegun fire from the aerial aggressor. She adroitly rolled aside as the spray of ammunition pattered past her. The bullets clang against the fire escape door and its housing, though Shimizu and Michimiya were already far enough inside to be safe. The gunner then arced his aim sideways to line up with Ryu and Kenma who were impeded from running inside by the machinegun's track. With no time to spare, Kenma dived atop the interior minister to throw them both on the ground. As they fell, several machinegun rounds drilled across Kenma's back.

Yamaguchi fearfully peered around the metal shard he found himself hiding behind while Akiteru shouted into a radio.

"We are under aerial attack! I need rocket launchers to the roof and medics on standby!" He ended the transmission and grasped his leg, gnashing his teeth. Yamaguchi gasped at the sight of a pyramidal chunk of metal that had impaled and become lodged in Akiteru's calf.

"It's fine!" he groaned, largely lying as a stabbing pain tore through his leg. There was no way he could crawl to the fire escape and avoid the Chinook's bullets.

With the gunner momentarily focused on Kenma, Saeko resumed her breakneck sprint to the fire escape and dived inside just before another round of ammo splattered in front of the doorway.

Heaving, Col. Tsukishima analyzed the situation. Takeda, Kenma, Ryu, and the any other soldiers or operators—all of whom had been aboard or adjacent to the helicopter when it exploded—were down. He and Yamaguchi appeared to be the only conscious ones left; perhaps they could make it as long as the enemy craft stayed focus on the doorway.

As if reading his mind, the Chinook fluttered loudly over the roof to the opposite side, putting Akiteru and Tadashi in clear view of the machinegun. Akiteru cursed aloud.

"Run!" he barked at a stunned Yamaguchi.

"Tsukki would kill me if I let you die!" he countered, Akiteru almost incensed Yamaguchi dared to talk back under the circumstances.

"Same if I let you die! Go!" Akiteru angrily shot back. Yamaguchi gnashed his lip as the chopper twisted to line up the machinegun on the two of them.

He had spent the civil war cooped up around makeshift computer stations using iffy hotspots, trying to empower the public, educate the myriad international observers, and maintain the support of the people for the Karasuno Popular Front. He had never seen battle once, let alone even held a gun.

The same had been true of his childhood friend Kei in fact. When the war broke out, Tadashi was shocked when the elder Tsukishima sibling rapidly joined the KPF and fought on its frontlines. Both the cowardly Tadashi and the eternally pessimistic Kei stayed home at first. It was only after his conscience and self-berating got to him that he tried to join the fight. He was rejected from military service due to his slim build, but Sawamura offered the young tech whizz the job of building their digital base. There, Yamaguchi found himself working alongside (and futilely trying to manage) an enterprising, boundless idealist named Shoyo Hinata.

When he invited Kei, the younger Tsukishima dismissively consigned Yamaguchi and his older brother to the gallows. Disappointed, Tadashi got to work and tried to move on, hearing no more from his comrade and justifying the silence as Kei fearing guilt by association. He was shocked to learn shortly thereafter that after their conversation, Kei independently approached the KPF for enlistment. Too rejected from the front, he ended up in an administrative support role, dealing with finances. When Tadashi ran into him at one of the field headquarters, Kei pretended he was under no obligation to tell Yamaguchi his goings-on. Tadashi was too ecstatic to see him to be angry. Kei never admitted it, but Yamaguchi could tell his last conversation with the reluctant blond somehow played a role in his decision to join.

The Tsukishima siblings and Tadashi were all lucky to have survived the previous conflict. But now, faced with the possibility of an unceremonious decease, Tadashi resolved the three of them would escape this conflict alive as well.

Tadashi spotted a submachinegun dropped by a dead soldier beside the cockpit of the helicopter. Driven by adrenaline, Yamaguchi sprinted towards the abandoned weapon against Akiteru's rebukes. He was a few feet from the weapon when the earsplitting pulse of the Chinook's personnel gun resumed behind him. Yamaguchi scooped up the gun, spun around clumsily, and aimed at the chopper. He barely had a second to comprehend that the aerial's machinegun's operator was fully protected inside his target. It didn't matter though; Tadashi's determined assassin painstakingly rotated the slow weapon towards the media chief, and Yamaguchi with no other hope pulled the trigger on the submachinegun. The recoil was far more brutal than he expected, such that only two rounds escaped before Yamaguchi lost his balance. His foot stepped backward onto the splayed arm of the dead soldier, causing him to roll back and hit the floor hard. The machinegun's bullets punctured the ground viciously just below Yamaguchi's feet, a sobering revelation for Tadashi that had he not accidentally fallen, he would have been dead.

Death still seemed on the horizon though as the gunner lined up again. From his position beside the cockpit, Yamaguchi couldn't see Akiteru but hoped his suicidal dash had given the older Tsukishima the opportunity to crawl to safety.

At the fire escape, a frantic soldier with a portable rocket launcher arrived beside a sheltering Saeko. The man wasted no time in firing a projectile at the attacking craft. By luck the rocket crashed into the Chinook's front rotor, sending it into an uncontrollable spin. Flying involuntarily sideways, it explosively slammed into the station's broadcast antenna at the corner of the roof, buckling the steel frame in the fiery impact. The chopper fractured in two, half of it crashing on the roof below the antenna and half tumbling down the side of the building, searing the exterior as it hit the ground in a meteoric ball of flame. Large blazes now raged in two separate parts of the roof.

The wounded Akiteru—who indeed was ignored by the machinegunner when Yamaguchi made his dash—beheld the wreckage of the Chinook burning beneath the precariously tall antenna, its steel, crisscross frame beginning to moan. Yamaguchi was so stunned by the helicopter's inexplicable demise that he lay down in shock in the exact spot he had tripped, having forgotten how to move.

It seemed, for a moment, they were saved.

Then, before Saeko could dash out to check on the previously endangered duo, the antenna whined morosely, sheared, and listed over the roof. It snapped boisterously and began to tumble on a trajectory lined up perfectly with Akiteru, the first helicopter's cockpit, and Yamaguchi.

The resulting crash was calamitous, showering even more fragments of metal in every direction, completely crushing the copter's already damaged cockpit as well as the metal sheet Akiteru and Tadashi had once been using for cover. Saeko couldn't see whatever became of Col. Tsukishima through the angled wreckage. At the edge of the roof, the impact was so sharp that the top portion of the antenna snapped again, sending a 20,000-pound steel javelin sinking to the ground below.

Flames grew rapidly now. Takinoue's cries had ceased, and Takeda was still motionless beside the craft. Medics pouring out of the stairwell barreled straight for the education minister. Saeko forced herself to her feet, mesmerized by the expanding conflagration. She spotted fuel leaking from the chopper, dribbling towards Ittetsu.

"Evacuate the building!" she fervently commanded. As medics hastily prepared to get Takeda on a stretcher in hopes of saving one person, Saeko was reluctantly content to write off Akiteru and Yamaguchi.

Then, she heard a desperate shriek from the far side of the flames.

"H-help me! Somebody!"

It was Yamaguchi.

Narrowly spotting the metal deathtrap falling towards him, Yamaguchi desperately tried to crawl away from its impact. He almost succeeded but found his calves pinned and seemingly flattened by the tumbling monstrosity. He futilely tried to yank himself free, unable to feel his feet trapped behind the metal. The overwhelming smell of gasoline evilly taunted him while the heat from the nearby flames soaked his body in sweat. After a few more moments, he thought he felt his fingertips becoming damp from petroleum.

"Somebody!" he shrieked one more time.

Suddenly, two medics, a soldier, and Saeko appeared around him. The elder Tanaka, the soldier, and one of the medics covered their palms with their sleeves and proceeded to shove the seething, steel frame in an attempt to raise it. Its structural integrity was shot by the multiple impacts, and it proved easier to budge than expected. Once the pressure was lifted on Yamaguchi's ankles—sending an even sharper pain through his nerves—the other medic dragged Yamaguchi onto a stretcher. All four immediately fled the vicinity of the craft.

Medics were already ferrying Takeda out of danger too by the time Saeko's team rounded the helicopter booking it towards the fire escape; a third medic was compressing a thick cloth against Takeda's skull as they carried him off. As Saeko's grouped neared the fire escape, the gasoline ignited and brutally produced a fireball that ripped a hole in the ceiling of the building's top floor underneath. Fire soon spread indoors.

Then Yamaguchi's thoughts turned to the person he'd tried to save a moment earlier.

"Akiteru!" he screamed hysterically at Saeko. "You have to save him!"

"Shut it!" Saeko barked.

"You can't leave him there!" Yamaguchi pleaded once more as the medics hustled him inside. Saeko held back, however. She took one glance at where she'd last seen Akiteru and dreaded his current condition.

Then in the corner of her eye, she spotted someone she'd assumed had long since gone inside: her brother, who was clearly alive but initially appeared to be on hands and knees and hunched forward.

"Ryu! What are you doing out here?! Get out!" Then she realized her brother's torso was convulsing rhythmically—he was giving chest compressions.

"Don't die on me, you idiot!" Ryu yelled. "Kenma, wake up!"

Kozume, eyes shut, a red streak staining the corner of his mouth, was leaking an ever-widening pool of blood from his back.

* * *

 **We will get updates on our heroes; some will fare better than others. And this will have consequences too, for both the coup leaders (Kageyama, inclusive) and for the survivors not wounded: Ryu, Saeko, Kiyoko, and Yui.**

 **This is also the longest chapter of all, but the content necessitated it. I hope it was worth it (and I hope this wasn't too cruel; let me know).**

 **As you wait for the next chapter, I found myself listening to "Lacrimosa" from Mozart's Requiem after finishing one revision of this chapter. To me, it not only fit the mood left by this chapter, but its lyrics hauntingly foreshadow what's to come now, particularly next chapter. I will share the original Latin and who the lyrics correspond to, and you can check the translation if you'd like a preview-though I've provided one _dual_ translation at the end where it matters:**

(Takeda, Kenma & Yamaguchi): _Lacrimosa dies illa_  
(Ryu & Bokuto): _qua resurget ex favilla_  
(Ryu & Saeko): _judicandus homo reus  
_ (Kiyoko, Yui & Hana): _Lacrimosa dies illa_  
(Sugawara): _qua resurget_  
(Inuoka): _ex favilla_  
(Oikawa, Iwaizumi, Kindaichi & especially Kageyama): _judicandus homo reus_  
(Terushima): _huic ergo parce Deus_  
(Hinata & Yachi): _Pie Iesu Domine  
_ \- And after the instrumental, simultaneously:  
(Hinata & one other person): _dona eis requiem_ ('grant them peace')  
(Yamamoto?): _dona eis requiem_ ('grant them "requiem"')


	17. In Motion

**My unexpected plot detour last chapter forced the story to take an unplanned turn. I knew that would be the case when I wrote chapter 16, but it will lengthen the story by about 2-3 chapters at least. It won't have a major impact on my intended finale, however. I'm excited though, as the new story direction means I can do more with Ryu and Saeko (which I wanted) and gives me an excuse to bring Hana back! This chapter was a lot of fun to write too for some reason.**

 **And as promised two chapters ago, we finally hear from Shoyo again...**

* * *

It was sometime after 7 a.m. when Hana Terushima returned to the suburban house her and her husband shared with their two kids. Last night, when Tanaka texted her spouse of three-and-a-half years about the country's dire situation, Yuji banked on skedaddling immediately, but an indignant Hana harangued him to fulfill his civic duty. The communications minister finally relented and said he would be at HBC for the first official press release.

Following HBC's shutdown, Hana couldn't sleep. Her best friend since middle school, Runa Kuribayashi, asked if to come over, afraid to be alone. It was late into the night when Kiyoko's first messages came, initiating the plans that resulted in the widespread morning protests. Runa watched the kids while Hana rendezvoused with Shimizu and some hundred other civilians, mostly women, and met the person who had hidden Kiyoko overnight, a college student named Yui Michimiya.

At 6 a.m., the woman was horrified to see her husband acting as a spokesperson for the coup. Several women assured her that, since Yuji was clearly nervous and sweating, he was probably under duress, but as much as Hana wanted that to be the case, she secretly questioned her husband's integrity. She temporarily buried those thoughts when the marchers embarked to break the siege of HBC. After that triumph, sleep deprivation caught up to the young mother, and Kiyoko permitted Hana to excuse herself.

Defying her exhausted body, Hana found herself hunched forward on the sofa glued to HBC's uninterrupted telecast. Against her will, the equally sleepy Runa nodded off in a loveseat shortly after Hana came home. Hana's 1-year-old daughter Hina was asleep, but the 3-year-old Yuto—with a furry, unkempt sheet of blond hair—actively entertained himself with everything to stay awake. The toddler jubilantly surmised from his father's appearance on TV that Daddy must be "famous" and refused to miss his papa's next cameo.

By late morning, Hana yawned as HBC showed a low-res cell phone video purportedly showing a Kitagawan jet above south Tokonami. The video froze to highlight a purplish tint on the wing's underside. Commentators said it was the light purple flower symbol of their western neighbor, but it was impossible to know for sure from the pixelated image, Hana thought.

The cameras returned to the newsroom where the male-and-female anchor duo that usually hosted the late-morning show offered pithy comments about the situation, emphasizing the jets had exclusively targeted a rebel-held aerodrome. They were about to introduce the next topic when both newscasters circumspectly glanced upwards. The two peered at one another and resumed reporting as if nothing had happened.

About a minute later, a producer flounced into the studio and swiped his index finger sideways across his neck, telling everyone to kill the broadcast.

"Uh, we are going to take a break suddenly," the male anchor said. "We will be back with you soo—"

The screen went black spontaneously. After a few seconds, Hana's TV audio popped ahead of a montage of military parades and electoral celebrations accompanied by the national anthem playing on a continuous loop. All the footage was at least 6 months old but, if not for the soundtrack and disjointed editing, could be mistaken for contemporaneous video.

Hana stared in confusion when a loud clang made her jump frenetically: Yuto, in his perpetual efforts to find something to do, had grabbed the telephone cord and yanked the handset off the hook.

"OK, Yuto!" the hypertensive mother declared. "Time for a nap!"

"But I wanna see Daddy!" the toddler protested.

"You'll see Daddy when he gets home," she countered, picking up the boy—and added with a hint of consternation: " _If_ he gets home."

When the mother returned from putting the boy to sleep, Runa had awoken, and the TV was totally black again.

"What's happening?" Runa asked nervously.

"That's what I want to know," Hana sighed and snapped up her smartphone. HBC's Twitter feed was silent. Then Hana's eyes bulged seeing her social media newsfeed. Several people were linking or uploading videos purportedly showing HBC's broadcast station spewing suffocating black smoke. One shaky video captured vivid footage of a helicopter's rotor exploding and careening into HBC's signal tower.

"Hana, do you see this?" Runa had grabbed her phone too and was discovering similar, horrifying images. Hana frantically sifted through her recent calls list and found Yui's number. When she dialed, it rang for a painfully long time.

"H-Hello?" Yui stammered. She sounded distraught, agitated, or both.

"Yui?"

"Yes?" Yui unsurely replied.

"Where are you?! What's happening?!"

There was a moment of silence. "Wh-Who is this?"

"I'm _Hana_!" she irritably answered.

There was a couple of seconds of silence as Yui tried to remember who Hana was: "Oh! You were Terushima's wife," she nonchalantly recalled.

" _Yes_!" Hana groaned irascibly. "Where are you?"

"We, uh, we're going to…to… (Sakanoshita?)"—the last word was spoken away from the receiver to someone in the vicinity—"…Sakanoshita. Yeah."

"The army base, right? I'm coming there. Tell Shimizu," Hana curtly stated.

"O-OK. D-Do you know how to get there?"

"I'll figure it out," Hana answered and hung up, skeptical of the girl's competence at the moment. She grabbed her car keys and crossed the kitchen to the garage.

"Runa, can you watch the kids again? Call me if you hear anything." Overwhelmed by the rapid flow of events, Kuribayashi barely had time to answer before Hana was gone.

As the former Miss Misaki rolled down the driveway, she questioned why she was heading into apparent danger. Everything from her house to Sakanoshita had been retaken—it wasn't a matter of safety—yet Hana had a bad feeling. Social media was rife with anxious speculation and boiling outrage. Speaking to Yui hadn't assuaged her worries. Several hours ago, when they first met, Michimiya seemed remarkably forthright for her age, but now the same girl acted as if her self-confidence had been so cruelly tested that she suddenly didn't know what she believed any more. Hana doubted the rebel attack on the TV studio was enough to disquiet her like that. Something else was going on.

* * *

It took over an hour to douse the flames at HBC. The studio was unusable and the building a total loss. Despite rumors, only 11 had died. Many more were grievously wounded; early estimates claimed up to 60, though it was probably close to 40.

Efforts were made to conceal the identities of those injured and killed to allay the public's fears and deny the mutineers the gratification. Even so, somehow Kenma's name was leaked, and the pro-Hinata internet erupted in fury. Thanks to adroit information control, Kenma's role in the coup's onset had been successfully covered up so far, so the result was Kozume was excessively painted as a pious martyr and the tragic savior of the country.

Despite some rumors, Kenma miraculously wasn't dead, though surgeons warned he still soon could be. He wasn't the only one in danger of expiring either, Takeda being one of them. To Kiyoko, the most disconcerting piece in it all was that, as unsubstantiated claims of casualties spread across the digital universe, Shimizu's "peaceful" opposition was rapidly mutating into a voracious demand for blood.

Then there was Acting President Tanaka, whose claim to the title was no longer challenged. Ryu had withdrawn from all human interaction except from his sister. A few blocks away from the wreckage of HBC, Yui tenuously nudged Shimizu's ribcage and pointed to a queue of detainees being filed into military trucks. Kiyoko recognized the prisoners as the police officers who had surrendered with Bokuto. Shimizu wondered whence they were suddenly being transported (especially in light of Kenma's promised amnesty) and who issued the order to do so.

Then another sight caught Kiyoko's eye on the other side of the street they occupied: Kotaro Bokuto, wrists handcuffed behind his back and torso and arms bound with rope. A soldier pulling the end of the rope led Bokuto like a dog toward an armored truck. Following grouchily were Ryu and a wry Saeko, the latter brandishing her pistol.

The soldier opened the backdoor of the armored vehicle. Ryu kneed Bokuto to cue the man to climb inside. Then the acting head of state entered as Kiyoko ran over.

"Tanaka!" she called, drawing the glances of both siblings.

"Kiyoko, you really want to watch this?" Ryu solemnly tested. Kiyoko convinced herself Ryu didn't plan a callous execution and sternly climbed inside the vehicle. When Yui trotted over, Saeko, who was now holding the door, shrugged and gestured inside. The girl hesitantly entered. Once Saeko was inside as well, the lieutenant-general shut the door behind them and replaced the latch.

Seated on the floor in the center of a spacious compartment suitable for movement of troops or supplies, Bokuto snickered.

"What makes you think I'll talk now?" Kotaro teased. Ryu shot his fist into Bokuto's visage without warning. The man rolled onto his back, wincing momentarily before sneering. "Ooh, does Kenma approve?"

Ryu straddled Bokuto and then crouched over the supine detainee.

"Who cares as long as _I_ approve," Tanaka grunted. He proceeded to mercilessly pummel Bokuto's face, forcing Yui to shield her eyes.

"Tanaka!" barked Kiyoko, but Saeko threw her hand in front of Shimizu. Kiyoko spotted Saeko's handgun and took it as a threat not to intervene, even as she personally doubted the older Tanaka would physically harm her.

After a long round of punches, Ryu straightened his back and cracked his knuckles. Bokuto, with numerous bruises on his face, self-righteously glared back. Kotaro didn't know exactly what had happened when HBC's building began to rock violently earlier, but he was sure Oikawa or Kuroo had something to do with it. Whatever had happened had also tipped the interior minister over the edge.

And that, Bokuto surmised, might be to his advantage.

"There. Now, who's behind this?" Ryu prodded.

Kotaro grinned. "I said before, didn't I? Kageyama."

Kiyoko became tense, surprised Bokuto was suddenly volunteering information when before he had refused to talk.

"Looks like I found out how to get through to you," Tanaka self-commended. "When'd Kageyama start plannin' this?"

"Probably since Hinata got elected."

"You've been planning this for six months?" Ryu grunted.

"Mhm. Kageyama said he joined Karasuno after realizing Seijoh had no chance of winning, despite how incapable Hinata was. It sounded like he wanted the job himself."

"Tanaka," Kiyoko pined, skeptical of Bokuto's candor. Ryu tuned out his comrade and raised Bokuto's torso by his lapels.

"Who told you we were at the Bunker?"

"Terushima, of course," replied Kotaro. Ryu suddenly recalled the communications minister's phone call to Sawamura right before the cell towers went down. He snarled and hoped to wring Terushima's neck himself.

"Who shot Daichi?" Ryu continued, his spirit beginning to break.

Bokuto thought momentarily. It was Iwaizumi, but, at the risk of his disingenuousness being exposed (and Kotaro had nothing to lose if it was), he thought better of throwing Hajime under the bus just yet.

"Lt.-Gen. Kindaichi."

Tanaka bit his lower lip and growled. He was momentarily distracted by a phone vibrating. Yui frenetically extricated the phone from her pocket and stared at the number. Saeko dryly glared at the girl debating whether to answer the call until opening the door of the vehicle.

"You can go," she permitted. Yui nodded and hopped out of the truck. Saeko closed the door and sealed it once more.

"What about Oikawa and Iwaizumi?" Ryu resumed, his pent up emotions slightly subsiding.

Bokuto cocked an eyebrow. It was a gamble, but he'd take it. Frankly he didn't know what the consequences would be, whether in the long run his deceptions would save Oikawa or himself. By this point, sadistically enjoying his ex-boss's rage, Kotaro simply thought it'd be fun to see the resulting cluster.

"Dunno. Kindaichi took Oikawa hostage at his house last night on Kageyama's orders. Kageyama was making him collaborate at the threat of his life. Turns out those two have a grudge." Bokuto inwardly applauded himself for his fine mixture of fact and fiction. "Iwaizumi would never oppose Oikawa, of course. When he came to rescue him, Oikawa made him defect for both their sakes."

Kiyoko simmered. She was certain almost everything if not everything Bokuto had spewed was a lie and was even more infuriated that Ryu was going along with it.

"Tanaka!"

"Kiyoko," Ryu addressed the woman. "I know it's hard to hear this. Leave if you have to."

Kiyoko frowned. She wouldn't leave: whatever thread Bokuto wove, Kiyoko had to hear it herself for Ryu's sake.

* * *

Ryu unceremoniously finished the interrogation with his strongest punch to Bokuto's countenance yet, nearly knocking the man out cold. When the trio exited the vehicle, Kiyoko spotted Yui nervously waiting to the side. She filed over to the woman in an attempt to separate herself from the acting president.

"Saeko," Ryu said, "if you hear from Suga, tell him we're advancing on Ministry Street." He leaned in closer. "And for all I care, tell your troops to shoot Terushima, Kindaichi, and Kageyama on sight."

"You got it," Saeko pleasantly affirmed. Despite his quieter tone, Kiyoko overhead the order.

"Is that what Hinata would want?" she questioned. Ryu fumed.

"If Hinata had wanted this from the start, we wouldn't be in this mess now, would we?!" He sanctimoniously stormed off.

Saeko glanced at Kiyoko. "If you're coming to Sakanoshita with us, you should probably keep your mouth shut." Saeko's caution was meant to sound gentle but came off more critically than she intended. In any event, the intent was the same, and the 4th Division's commander marched after Ryu.

Yui warily glanced at Kiyoko, the latter's face stonily defiant.

"Yui, if worse comes to worst, make sure Gen. Sugawara stops Tanaka."

The pair prepared to head for the Sakanoshita barracks. Amidst the commotion, Yui forgot about the phone call she'd just taken from Terushima's wife, in which Hana said to tell Kiyoko she was on her way to Sakanoshita as well.

* * *

Beneath the streets of Tokonami, a set of fingers rolled over a support beam at the corner of a three-way intersection in Ushiwaka's dilapidated, underground labyrinth. The fingers detected the shape of a crosshatch, and a flashlight was shone on the surface to verify the identification.

"This way!" Yuu Nishinoya proudly announced to Hinata and Yachi. Yachi breathed a sigh of relief, as if there had actually been a chance they were lost. Noya took the lead with his flashlight down the tunnel, Hinata keeping his own lit to illuminate the back of the head presidential guardsman. Yachi huddled against Shoyo's body, listening softly as Hinata resumed excitably recounting their ordeal to Noya as if it were an adventure film.

"Oh! But then they attacked us with a tank!" Shoyo melodramatically expanded his arms to emulate the size of the tank that bombarded the Wakunan complex, even though he himself hadn't actually seen the vehicle. Noya peered placidly over his shoulder at the president. It was a miracle Hinata was alive, Yuu thought. It was a miracle they both were actually, even if Noya's story of survival wasn't as riveting.

When the missiles struck the Black Crow Hotel, Nishinoya fell to the ground floor. Not one to be bested by a couple of rockets and 10,000 tons of rubble, he clawed his way to the tunnel, dug through the debris at the entrance, and wriggled inside. He hobbled aimlessly through the underground passage for hours. When he seemed hopelessly lost, the dynamite blast set off by Mad Dog's grenade drew Noya to Shoyo and Hitoka.

When Shoyo finished the story, Hinata asked aloud for Tsukki to be OK. Noya smirked, resolved not to be a downer, and flashed a grin at the president.

"Of course, he'll be OK! He's not a pushover! Plus," Noya cockily added, "now that I'm here, you're guaranteed to be safe as well."

"Yeah!" Hinata proclaimed. He jogged in front of Noya, dragging Yachi with him. Shoyo began to walk backward in front of Yuu, forcing the latter to irksomely aim his flashlight around the president's form. "Yeah, and Suga's gonna beat these guys like he did beat Ushiwaka!" Shoyo flung his fists in the air only for his upbeat mood to fade. He had forgotten—or rather there was no appropriate moment—to tell Suga something. With Noya here, maybe he had some thoughts.

"Hey, um, Noya, you know, what if—" He stammered nervously, but Nishinoya suddenly shushed the president. The "Libero's" ear detected another sound within the labyrinthine network, and he shined his flashlight towards the intersection they'd just past. Yachi and Hinata couldn't hear the noise that had made Yuu tense, but the sudden silence now creeped Hitoka out.

"Um, we should…keep…going," Yachi quietly encouraged. She started down the path ahead of Hinata. Shoyo spun his flashlight, aimed at the ground in front of the girl.

And then Shoyo frightfully realized there _was_ no ground in front of the girl.

"Hitoka!"

Shoyo clasped Yachi's wrist as her lead foot began to descend into a sinkhole spanning the tunnel. Yuu grabbed Hinata and yanked them both back away. Hitoka thudded painfully on her chin and groaned. Yuu, not one to let a woman be in distress, sprang towards her and sat her upright.

"You all right? Anything hurt?" he overzealously queried. Gazing at the chivalrous Noya excessively examining Hitoka's entire frame for injury, Shoyo righted himself with a grin. He peered at their impeded path and momentarily wondered what their Plan B was going to be. He was brought back to reality when he realized the three of them were being illumined by a third flashlight beam.

Shoyo shined his own flashlight on the fourth person in the corridor with them. The beam across the man's face caused the person to squint and look away. Noya hopped to his feet and shined his light on the interloper too, his free hand hovering over his sidearm.

"Who are you?!" challenged Noya.

Opposite them, the frazzled man—coated in dust in a ravaged military uniform with several lacerations on his face—rubbed his eyes and beheld the group opposite. He couldn't believe it: before him stood the elusive and improbably immortal president Shoyo Hinata, alongside the incredulously indestructible Libero, Yuu Nishinoya. The man didn't know what god was showing favor on him at this moment, but, with a grin, the bruised and betrayed Taketora Yamamoto saw his fortune finally turning around.

* * *

 **And, scene! And things will get worse before they get better.**

 **In waiting for the next chapter, I ask you all to ponder: how will _Ukai_ react to the Tanakas' new MO? Leave any thoughts on this chapter or future speculation in the comments.**


	18. Surrogate President

**Sorry for the later-than-expected installment. Had a busy November, but I started December strong and already have chapter 19 written. Enjoy!**

* * *

In the foyer outside the president's office in the presidential estate, Toru Oikawa followed the new developments with repressed intrigue: first the conflagration of HBC—undoubtedly Kuroo's doing—and now the first public appearance of "Acting President" Ryunosuke Tanaka in a news conference. And then there were the three people Tanaka bizarrely named as the coup's leaders: Kageyama, Kindaichi, and Terushima. Though it wasn't said explicitly, his careless characterization of the "immoral" and "evil" criminals practically advocated their lynching. It all preceded Tanaka's declaration that a military thrust towards the presidential compound on Ministry Street had already begun.

Lt-Gen. Iwaizumi hovered beside the seated Oikawa who grinned slyly as he re-watched the video conference on his cell phone, hoping to learn all he could about his opponents' state of affairs.

"What do you make of it?" Hajime asked.

"Either Ryu's trying to make us think he doesn't know I'm in charge—and he's not smart enough for that—or Bokuto had a hand in this."

"My thoughts exactly," Iwaizumi echoed. Oikawa stood up and paced.

"But Tanaka has coined himself 'Acting President.' That means, one, Hinata must not be in a position to reveal himself publicly— _if_ he's alive. Two, no one would let that buffoon make such a reckless speech, so that TV station attack dispensed Karasuno's usual powerbrokers. Three, they know I'm here."

"How do you figure that?"

"Because they skipped me in the succession. Probably thanks to Bokuto, they probably think I'm an unwilling prisoner here."

Oikawa plodded back in his armchair and extricated another cell phone from his pocket, though this phone wasn't his. He studied a text message on the screen and then slid it back into his pocket without replying.

Behind the armchair Toru occupied, Yuji Terushima crouched in front of a laptop. For the past half-hour, the communications minister—initially at the barrel of a gun—had been hard at work using social media proxies to spread confusion among the pro-Hinata faction. Of course, Terushima's cooperation had become a lot more heartfelt ever since Tanaka's raving-mad speech, and Toru convinced him to again fear for his family's safety because of it. Thanks to Terushima's disinformation, it was accepted by most of social media that Kenma was dead. The "official" sources tried to correct the claims, but Terushima shut off access to the offending accounts. Tellingly, the claims that Kozume lived were not cautious about their assertion, suggesting the Commander of the Police Forces was in dire condition. That meant the last person with any intimate knowledge of Oikawa's participation in the coup was down for the count.

"Yuji, is there any word on Sugawara?" Toru called.

"Uh, not really," Terushima recalled. "Looks like Tanaka's sister is leading the advance on Ministry Street."

"Another firecracker," Iwaizumi chimed in reference to Saeko.

"Um, it is really safe here?" Terushima nervously asked. Oikawa was deep in thought, and Iwaizumi ignored the question, prompting Terushima to return to his social media war.

Once Terushima was distracted, Oikawa withdrew the other cell phone he was using and penned a.

Where was Sugawara?, Toru wondered. Shortly before Yamamoto's hostage video deadline expired, Chidoriyama Airfield was savaged by Kitagawan bombers. Then around the deadline, HBC was immolated. Very quickly thereafter, a mass surrender of soldiers from Aone's 11th Division began. Since one of the places Aone's unit had been garrisoning was military headquarters and since Kuroo hadn't attempted any new contact with Oikawa, the explanation was obvious: Aone had defected, Kuroo was probably dead, and Sugawara most likely had something to do with it.

Yet, the People's General—the face of the resistance before now—hadn't made a public appearance since. Rumors he had died at HBC were countered by Kiyoko and her companions who insisted he wasn't at the TV station at the time. Oikawa suspected that was true.

What didn't make sense was that shortly after Iwaizumi received the first reports of the 11th Division capitulating, its soldiers were reportedly being beaten and corralled like cattle. Such aggression was out of character for Sugawara, and Tanaka's riling speech further made it seem Sugawara was no longer in control, yet there was no indication what happened to him.

On the bright side, the treatment of the surrendering troops brought an end to the mass defection, and many of the soldiers instead yielded to Iwaizumi's command. Subsequently, as commander of the remaining coup forces in Yukigaoka City (including Kindaichi's division while the lieutenant-general was guarding Kageyama), Iwaizumi moved his trips to a tighter perimeter centered on Ministry Street.

One Karasuno-ite who _was_ actively trying to temper Ryu's coal-stoking was the Minister of Youth and Culture, Kiyoko. Her moderate voice quickly became lost in the sea of rage though. She most likely was still physically near the acting president and probably hadn't signed off on his seditious tirade.

Oikawa smirked. A loose-cannon Tanaka was a most predictable foe, and Toru was rapidly gathering how he could salvage the situation. The only potentially irksome variables were Sugawara, Kiyoko, and a possibly still-living Hinata (since Toru remained prudently skeptical in lack of the corpse he demanded). Sugawara's vanishing perhaps suggested one of those variables had already been silenced, and now, thanks to Ryu's volatility, Toru got an idea of how to eliminate another one.

"Yuji," Toru called, "I don't care how, but make a credible threat against Ms. Kiyoko's life please."

Terushima was as much struck by Oikawa's politeness as he was the incredulity of the order.

"You understand, don't you?" Iwaizumi threateningly echoed. Terushima flinched and typed away quickly. By now, Terushima realized Iwaizumi was far scarier than Oikawa on the outside, and together they were a match made in hell.

Toru popped up from his armchair and sauntered to the window overlooking the front courtyard. He could see all the way down the building-lined Ministry Street, the four-lane road now littered with sandbags, concrete barriers, and materiel. Most of the soldiers here were in Kindaichi's 5th Division, and the defensive postures were part of Oikawa's plan to make the last redoubt.

"You know we won't win a firefight," Iwaizumi foreboded as he joined Toru.

"Exactly. That's why—" He paused when the phone in his pocket buzzed. Toru withdrew it and grinned at the screen. Iwaizumi's eyes widened when he realized it was Terushima's phone. Oikawa typed up a new message and then put the phone away quickly. "Just letting my 'wife' know I'm OK," he winked craftily,

"You really are sick," Iwaizumi grunted. Toru took melodramatic offense. "You were saying?" Hajime continued to get his boss back on track.

"Oh, yes. Well, I'm still debating, but if Tanaka wants Tobio's head, why don't we give it to him?"

* * *

After hearing Tanaka's uncontrolled tirade on her car radio, Hana couldn't help but text her husband, hoping in part to disprove her own pessimism about Yuji's fidelity to the state. Surprisingly, she received a response. Their conversation was sporadic, with Yuji's uninformative replies having an unusual cadence that Hana blamed on apparent duress. If she had pondered it more deeply and had not been trying to navigate blockaded streets while texting, she might have realized the person on the other end wasn't her husband.

Disguised as Yuji, Toru mostly asked about Hana's wellbeing, the kids, and her whereabouts. He also inquired about the location of Kiyoko and Tanaka, but Hana only said she was going to see them, and she soon arrived at a military checkpoint on the edge of the Sakanoshita district. Hana saw a new message from Yuji but stuffed the phone in her pocket as an officer came to her vehicle to learn her identity. She said she was an associate of Kiyoko's. After getting a hold of Shimizu (who subsequently heard frenetic apologies from Yui who'd forgotten to mention Mrs. Terushima's coming), the officer directed Hana to leave her car while she was ferried to Shimizu in a military jeep. Under Tanaka's administration, security had been stepped up significantly, which magnified Hana's original fears that something awful was afoot. She didn't pull out her cell phone to reply to the new text; this wasn't the environment in which to potentially reveal she was conversing with a wanted traitor.

* * *

Once being told of Hana's arrival, Kiyoko figured Hana was concerned by Ryu's provocative speech and huffily ordered the messenger to bring the woman immediately. Then Shimizu and the hapless Yui continued to wait for Ryu to exit the safe house he'd locked himself in since the broadcast. Saeko was standing by to meet the acting president when Ryunosuke finally appeared, and he jolted when Kiyoko shoved aside his bodyguards to get to the self-proclaimed leader.

"Tanaka! What the heck is wrong with you?!" she screeched. This is exactly what Ryu was afraid of, but he took her anger in stride. Saeko tried to step between the pair, but Ryu calmly called her off. After all, even on sour terms, any conversation with Kiyoko was generally welcome. "Never mind your arrogant press conference: I hope you know the soldiers that were surrendering have defected back because of your treatment."

"They're crooks. What do they expect?" Tanaka grumbled.

"And why am I trying to keep everyone calm when you're out there stoking a riot?!"

Here Saeko stepped between the pair with a disingenuously gentle smile.

"Listen," Ryu's sister said patronizingly. "You did great overnight, getting everyone ready to fight back this morning; but we have to fight this war like a war, so you've done your part, and this is ours."

"You're both acting like Ushiwaka," Kiyoko panned. Ryu whipped past Saeko; not much could get him angry at Kiyoko, but this was his trigger point.

"No," he spat back. "The guys who killed Asahi, Daichi, and Ennoshita are acting like Ushiwaka. I'm just responding in kind."

Kiyoko was momentarily stunned, this being her first hearing of Ennoshita's loss. She frowned.

"Hinata would never approve of this!"

"And that's why I'm going to finish off these thugs before Hinata comes back," Ryu forthrightly declared.

"Who made you queen bee?" Kiyoko chided.

"All these people died because _Hinata_ wasn't willing to purge these _asinine murderers_ with Ushiwaka in the first place!" Ryu wailed.

"What's Hinata going to say when he finds out?!"

Ryu snarled. He didn't want to disclose this, but obviously Kiyoko needed to hear it. After all, he figured it would become public soon enough.

"You don't know this, but last night, Hinata told Asahi he wanted to quit being president."

Kiyoko jolted.

"What do you mean?"

"What I just said. He _quit_. In the middle of anarchy, he _quits_! He left Asahi in charge until the moment he died! I don't care about his broadcast to the people. There's no way I'm letting a guy like that waltz back in and act like everything's fine!" Ryu's screeching voice presaged his eyes starting to water. He pulled back and wiped his sleeve over his face.

Kiyoko purposely ignored Ryu's borderline mutinous threat to not relinquish his position as Acting President if and when Hinata returned. As far as Shoyo's alleged resignation, Asahi wasn't here to explain what Hinata may or may not have said. She decided the matter would have to be settled when Hinata came back.

Tanaka's explanation to Kiyoko wasn't how he truly felt anyway. In the Bunker, Asahi did carelessly disclose to Tanaka the substance of the VP's conversation with Shoyo. Ryu didn't honestly believe it at the time, and Asahi made clear he "rejected" Hinata's resignation. But Tanaka genuinely did hold a tinge of resentment for Shoyo's insistence on appointing Bokuto chief of police in the capital. He also distinctly recalled that, during his exchange with Hinata over Bokuto's horrifying record as an officer under Ushiwaka, Prime Minister Kageyama too supported Hinata's position. They both claimed it would let them monitor Bokuto more closely, given the amnesty for all those who betrayed Ushijima. That same Kageyama had now betrayed Hinata, and Hinata's misplaced faith in people had culminated in tonight's tragedy anyway. Hinata's unsuitability to lead had caused this nightmare, and Ryu would be damned if Shoyo tried to sweep everything under the rug again.

"What does Sugawara think of all this?" Kiyoko resumed, adopting a new line of reasoning.

The Tanaka siblings jolted. Kiyoko knew Kuroo was dead and had been told Sugawara was going to stay at HQ. Sugawara—as mild-mannered and professional as he was, and beholden to Hinata because of his best friend Daichi's faith in the young president—would never consent to Ryu's new way of conducting the countercoup operations. Saeko was Sugawara's subordinate too, so Kiyoko presumed Sugawara had been left in the dark.

The two siblings merely glanced aside and said nothing.

"Sugawara doesn't even know what you're doing, does he?" Kiyoko insinuated. Her train of thought was disturbed when Yui yanked on Kiyoko's shirt.

"Kiyoko! The coup guys just said they're going to kill you next!" she screeched.

"Whaaaat?!" Ryu vociferously bellowed. He rushed in front of Kiyoko as if to be a human shield. "Screw that! No one touches my Kiyoko!"

Then, the jeep carrying the officer from the checkpoint and Hana Terushima pulled up. Ryu instantly recognized Terushima's wife.

"You!" he squealed, pointing accusatively at Hana. "Arrest that woman for espionage and attempted murder!"

Ryu's bodyguards dutifully obeyed and restrained Hana who was in as much as shock as Kiyoko and Yui. The guards searched her and pulled out the cell phone. One guard handed it to Ryu who saw the lit-up screen and was disgusted by the lingering notification of a text message from Yuji. That proved it. Terushima was low enough to use his wife to do his dirty work, against Kiyoko no less. He'd make sure that scoundrel paid. Hana was taken kicking and screaming to the barracks brig while Tanaka kept the phone for safe keeping.

"Tanaka, you're insane!" rebuked Kiyoko. Ryu appeared entranced as he imagined Kiyoko dying.

"Kiyoko," Tanaka sternly cut in, "it's obvious Kageyama and his goons have it out for you. They know that if you get hurt, it will tear me apart. I can't let that happen." He turned to his entourage. "Make sure Kiyoko is under constant guard! Don't let her out for any reason until we have defeated the enemy."

Two more of his escort saluted and proceeded to flank Kiyoko.

"Please, ma'am, we must take you inside," one said calmly as he slid his arm under Kiyoko's elbow. Having ditched her cell phone the night before to hide from Bokuto, if Kiyoko were isolated inside, she'd have no way to check Tanaka.

"Yui!" Kiyoko yelped as the guards led her inside. "You know what to do! I trust you!" Kiyoko disappeared inside the safe house, not to be seen again until the end of the coup.

Yui for her part was simply stunned.

"Michimiya, was it?" Saeko began. Yui nodded. "You're safer if you go home. Thanks for everything." Saeko nodded towards the mystified officer who'd brought Hana, telling him to remove Yui from the compound. Kiyoko's tagalong was no use to them.

* * *

After being dropped off outside one of the checkpoints, Yui passed two soldiers searching an abandoned car that Yui feared might have been Hana's. She was a few miles from her house but was only glad to be away from that frightful environment.

She thought about Kiyoko's last directive. At first, she had no idea what to do and reflected on everything Kiyoko and Tanaka had said. She didn't want to believe it, but it sounded almost as like Tanaka wanted to ensure Hinata didn't return to the presidency. Tanaka also appeared to have left Sugawara in the dark.

And then it hit her. Sugawara was Saeko's immediate superior. She didn't know how that fact would impact the younger Tanaka sibling, but Sugawara could at least order Saeko to stand down instead of advancing on Ministry Street. She checked her phone and fortunately found Koshi's contact info saved in her list.

* * *

 **I'm actually a lot more excited for how things are playing out ever since I changed my outline in Chapter 16. Hope you're enjoying it too! Will Sugawara (and Yui) save the day? You'll find out.**


	19. The Silent Second Coup

**Yes! The uploads are working again. One day later than I should have been able to, but here is chapter 19 at last! Sorry for the long wait. RL has been exceptionally busy, and it pains me that it took anywhere close to this long.**

* * *

Immediately following the death of Kuroo, Lt.-Gen. Aone attempted to recall the helicopter bound for HBC. Gen. Suga soon uncovered the deadly conflagration engulfing the building. When Suga reported the turn of events to Gen. Ukai, the reinstated chief of staff, the latter revealed he had already made successful contact with Saeko. Keishin detailed the casualties of the station attack, in light of which Ryu had been declared acting president.

"I should join Saeko and—"

"No need," Ukai interrupted. "They've got it covered, and it's too dangerous to send you all the way back there alone. Plus, it'll just slow things down. Since I know how good you are with personnel"—Ukai stubbed a cigarette out in his ashtray and smirked—"care reconstituting the Headquarters Protection Regiment for me?"

* * *

Meanwhile, Suga had granted Aone his liberty as long as he remained on the grounds of HQ. Now, the disgraced Takanobu Aone slouched solitarily in an unused office. He lamented everything that had happened, especially his fecklessness in accepting Kuroo's vows to better Takanobu's people faster than the gentle Hinata had already promised to do. He thought of his friends back home; Moniwa the town councilman would be appalled to learn of Aone's methods, even if it were for the good. Now, he wanted only to bow before the premier he'd betrayed and seek an undeserved forgiveness.

Even now, Aone pondered what he could do to redeem himself, not so he could curry favor with Hinata but sincerely out of remorse. He'd ordered his troops to capitulate and assured the regiment leaders that Sugawara would treat them well as POWs. Still, Aone's division was only one-third of the coup's military. Was it somehow possible to convince the commanders of the other two divisions to throw in the towel as well? Definitely not Iwaizumi. He showed himself staunchly dedicated to the cause before Aone had ever been recruited. But, Aone realized, he'd never sensed the same dogmatism from the 5th Division commander, Kindaichi.

He sat up suddenly. Kindaichi. Perhaps there really was another way for him to further abet the mutiny's defeat.

He swung open the office door bent on finding Suga but instead stared into the eyes of a grouchy officer from the Headquarters Protection Regiment. The unsympathetic man must have been one of the people Aone's troops detained when they took over the base. Takanobu guiltily diverted his gaze.

"You're not going anywhere," the officer grunted. Aone stepped backward as a handful of soldiers with submachineguns slinked into the room. Takanobu quizzically gazed at the barrels of the weapons aimed at him. "Arrest him," the officer calmly directed. Aone didn't resist as he was handcuffed without explanation.

* * *

Gen. Koshi Sugawara was more furious than he'd been a very long time. Gathering with a number of Protection Regiment soldiers to watch Ryu's first public address, the acting president's irresponsibly inflammatory speech was not only juvenile but entirely contrary to Hinata's careful wishes. Not only would Shoyo never support the utter demonization of anyone—including the people who'd tried to murder him—the president had, for whatever reason, expressly asked not to publicize the coup leader's identity if it were to be discovered. Despite that, Ryunosuke Tanaka had formally fingered the Prime Minister Tobio Kageyama as the leader of the insurrection, alongside alleged accomplices: communications minister Yuji Terushima and commander of the 2nd Army's 5th Division, Yutaro Kindaichi. Suga was surprised that Lt.-Gen. Iwaizumi and Toru Oikawa were conspicuously omitted. He thought maybe the acting president had a plan, that the omissions were part of a greater ploy. But this was the impulsive Ryunosuke Tanaka; to think he had a deeply elaborate scheme felt a tad farfetched.

In short order, Sugawara barged into Keishin's office. Ukai had a cigarette burning in his hand and almost appeared to have been expecting Sugawara's entrance.

"Get Saeko on the phone!" For some reason, Suga's own attempts to contact the new headquarters in Sakanoshita were repeatedly stonewalled by middlemen.

"What for?" he asked, already suspecting the reason.

"Hinata didn't want us acting rash. I told you that, right?"

"Hinata's not here," Ukai said with a shrug. Koshi quickly deduced he wasn't going to get anywhere with the apathetic chief of staff.

"I'm going to Sakanoshita. I'll speak to Saeko and get Ryu's head on straight."

"No need," Keishin sighed. "I'll call her. You're better off here, protected, anyway. If you die too, morale will drop like sack of bricks, not to mention whipping everyone into a frenzy. Remember, you only made it here safely because of that ceasefire. Iwaizumi's already resumed hostilities, so it's not safe anymore."

"Yes, I know," grumbled Sugawara.

"So, it's settled. I'll get Saeko to calm Ryu down. Finish making the rearrangements, please. And care not barging in here again?"

Sometime later, as Suga continued the tedious and mostly unnecessary task of reordering the garrison, it occurred to him he hadn't seen Aone in a while. The turncoat couldn't identify any conspirator above Kuroo, but the chaos at HBC meant Koshi never had the chance to formally question Aone about other details. He was about to search for the lieutenant-general when his cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Oh! Um, Mr., um— _General_ Sugawara?" stammered Kiyoko's friend Yui.

"Oh, Michimiya, right?"

"Yes, um, you see…." What Sugawara heard next made him stop. Yui described everything she had witnessed, from the harsh disposition towards prisoners of war; Bokuto's brutal interrogation; Hana's baseless arrest as a collaborator; and Kiyoko's sequestering. The whole thing stunk of a miniature arrogation of its own. Yui also revealed that Tsukishima had disclosed Hinata's whereabouts who was now being actively sought, which was very belated news to Sugawara. "I don't know what to do. I think Kiyoko thought maybe—"

"It's all right," Sugawara, after taking a few breaths to compose himself, calmly answered. "You did the right thing. I'll fix this. I'll call you back. Stay safe and away from Tanaka right now—uh, _both_ of them I mean. Avoid _both_ of them."

Sugawara hung up and stormed right back into Keishin's office. This time the chief of staff seemed genuinely surprised at Koshi's arrival.

"General, I just got a call describing the situation at Sakanoshita. I don't know what they told you, but Ryu and Saeko have gotten out of hand and are running this place like a dictatorship. I'm requesting permission to go there now."

Suga's face was firm. Ukai gaped oddly and then grimaced.

"Oh, geez," he mumbled. The muted reaction gave Sugawara brief pause. The general calmly lit a cigarette and blew a huge puff before replying.

"Nope. You're staying here. That is that," he stated.

"General, aren't you the least bit concerned what Tanaka could do?!" Suga urgently begged.

"I'd watch your tone addressing your superior, Sugawara," Ukai censured. Koshi checked himself, allowing Ukai to continue. "This is now the _second_ time in 24 hours that a subordinate has asked me to take action against the commander-in-chief, and let me tell you: I _don't_ like it," Ukai griped sternly. "Tanaka's the supreme chief of the Army, so however he wants to handle this is his call. I follow his orders."

"But he's _not_ the commander-in-chief. I just learned Narita knows where Hinata is hiding. He's alive!" Suga reported, expecting Ukai must have been in the dark as well to have not conveyed such knowledge to Koshi.

"We _don't_ know that," Ukai firmly stated. Sugawara took note of Ukai's phrasing, which seemed to imply, on the contrary, Keishin did already know the status of the search for the president.

"Wait. You didn't tell me that Narita knew where Hinata was?"

"Sugawara," he groaned around the cigarette in his mouth. Suga processed everything, in particular the fact he'd been unreasonably prevented from talking to his subordinate Saeko yet Ukai had supposedly experienced no problem repeatedly.

"You…and Tanaka—you're both trying to keep me here on purpose…."

"Sugawara," repeated Ukai with increasing frustration.

"You and Tanaka are launching your own coup!"

Keishin's fist slammed on the desk, bouncing the omnipresent ashtray. The chief of staff stared daggers at his subordinate.

"That's a _very_ sensitive word you're throwing around. _Sure_ you want to be using it?"

Sugawara only partially regretted the choice of words but actually didn't really mean to question his superior's loyalty.

"I apologize, General." He bowed his head sincerely. Ukai's glare softened, but even with his subordinate's apology, he was still skeptical of this having a positive outcome. Sugawara was always too smart for his own good. After the HBC catastrophe, Ukai luckily reached Saeko first and learned the gravity of the situation. The lives taken by these scoundrels—people who had gotten their appointments because of Hinata's negligent leadership—were now too many, and soon Gen. Ukai and the Tanaka siblings reached an unspoken agreement to dispose of the "trash" while Hinata was MIA.

Of course, they knew Suga would never accede to their particular methods, and thus deceiving the 1st Army commander was necessary. Since Suga had basically uncovered the truth, there was no reason to hold back now.

"Sugawara, do you realize if Hinata had been an effective leader, none of this would have happened?"

"So you're blaming the coup on Hinata?" Suga jabbed.

"Of course not. I mean that Tanaka and I are going to clean up Hinata's mess while we can."

"So you go over my head to issue orders to my subordinate."

"It hardly makes sense for Ryu to transmit his orders to me, then me to you, and back to Saeko when she's standing right next to him," Ukai disingenuously answered. "Besides, were _you_ going to order Saeko to march on Kageyama's doorstep?"

Hinata's last directives to Sugawara were to besiege the last holdout of the traitors but not attack. Hinata claimed that he himself wanted to negotiate with the enemy. It was an odd request that even in full control Sugawara couldn't guarantee, but he'd kept it in the back of his mind in the prioritization of the campaign in the capital.

"Hinata wouldn't want this," Sugawara asserted.

"Sugawara, even if Hinata is alive—which to be honest the dumb pipsqueak probably is given his stupid survival rate so far—he will no longer be head of state."

"Why not?" questioned Suga, a bit unnerved by Ukai's claim. Keishin had heard about Hinata's rumored resignation conveyed to Asahi and Sawamura but actually placed very little weight on it. Ukai's opinion was based on his own logic, one he was sure even Sugawara couldn't dispute. He raised his index and middle finger to sign the number two.

"Hinata was totally beholden to _two_ people before this whole mess started: Sawamura and Kageyama. No question. Those are the two people he always looked up to and who publicly supported him every step of the way. Now, how do you think he's going to react when he realizes one of those two people killed the other and tried to kill Hinata himself?" Sugawara's head drooped. "Plus, when the people see the body count from this fiasco caused by that shorty's lack of foresight, I believe after some critical thinking, they won't want Hinata back either."

Suga's fists shook and he snarled, noticed by Ukai.

"Don't get mad," continued the chief of staff. "Kageyama's plot succeeded. I don't mean that Kageyama will become the new president—I mean as far as ousting Hinata. They accomplished their goal, and it's for the country's best."

"Then I want no part in it," mumbled Sugawara.

"I'm not forcing you to get your hands dirty. Just stay here and don't get involved."

"No! This can't be as simple as you guys think it is," Sugawara roared. "And…" He meditated on Hinata's oddly specific requests about the conduct of the coup's destruction. There was something Shoyo's specificity, even if Suga didn't know what. "…I think Hinata knows that too."

"Oh, really? And what do you plan to do about it? A mutiny of your own is out of the question."

It was. To revolt against Tanaka and split the loyalists against themselves could only cause calamitous amounts of confusion and bloodshed and possibly give the original traitors a chance to reconsolidate and salvage their own debacle.

"It doesn't matter. I'll do something," Sugawara insisted.

"Sugawara, I don't want to have to detain you," Ukai cringed, though it was an empty threat. He wouldn't dare treat the person who'd rescued him that sorely.

"Like you detained Aone?" Suga finally deduced.

Ukai smirked smugly. "It's really hard to let a guy just roam free when he pointed a gun at you last night." Sugawara wasn't impressed by the chief of staff's reasoning.

"You and Tanaka—you're both just miniature Ushiwakas."

Ukai was at the end of his cigarette and stubbornly stubbed it out with a discontented glare. He was hesitant to light a second one, hoping to end this stressful exchange without the need.

"The matter's settled, Sugawara. Your orders are to stay here and take no action for or against Tanaka. Those are my direct orders. Now, are you going to obey them?"

The final ultimatum at last. Unfortunately for Ukai, Sugawara had already started devising his own scheme. But for it to work, he had to get off the base. Ukai wouldn't dare actually arrest him, and Koshi sensed the chief of staff wouldn't go so far as to punish him with a dismissal or a drop in rank for "insubordination." That left one, painful course of action if he had any hope of stalling Tanaka long enough for Hinata to be located and brought back onto the scene.

"Fine. If those are my orders, then I resign." With no delay, he dramatically ripped the chevrons from his sleeve and slammed them on Ukai's desk, a symbolic declaration that he was no longer a general or soldier in the Haikyu Army—and thus, to Ukai's incredulity, was instantly no longer bound by the chief of staff's directives.

Sugawara marched out of the room without another word, Ukai gawking silently.

"Oh, geez," the chief of staff grumbled as he had when Suga initially entered. He picked up the receiver of his telephone. "Better warn Tanaka."

The first place Suga went was the motor pool where he easily commandeered a jeep. No one noticed the missing insignia on his arm. After he left the garage, the Protection Regiment officer who detained Aone—now dispatched by Gen. Ukai to locate Suga—arrived at the motor pool, only to be inflamed by the clerks' lackadaisical assistance to the ex-general. To maintain order, Sugawara's resignation was to remain mum though, so the officer immediately phoned the main gate.

By then, Sugawara had already been waved through the gate by the guards, saying he was off on a short stroll.

Once he was far enough from the camp, he removed his officer's cap and blazer, bearing only a white T-shirt that he hoped would make his identity less obvious. He recalled the last strategic map of the city he'd seen, trying to envision the most direct route to his destination while avoiding loyalist checkpoints. There could be absolutely no witnesses to what he was about to do.

As he sped along a suburban street, he first made two phone calls: one to Gen. Narita, the next to Gen. Kinoshita. He soon discovered he could trust each of them, the detailed the situation and what each of them to do. Then, as he'd promised, he called back Yui.

"Michimiya, there's been an unfortunate change. Thank you so much for your info. I will handle most things from here, but I can't tell you what's about to happen. I don't think I'll be able to call you again. Don't trust anyone who texts you from this number either just in case." Sugawara would delete his recent call list after this phone call as a precaution. He glanced either side, checking for observers before adding one last thing. "Also, if you get a call from a man named Kazuhito Narita, you can trust him. Do whatever he says. And, I don't know if you're religious at all, but if you are, pray for me. I think I could die in the next few hours."

* * *

 **Next chapter is already written so shouldn't take as long as this one did to publish. Not promising anything since it all depends on RL being kind to me again; I just mean it won't require as much work as this chapter did.**

 **After that, I expect there to be at least two more chapters at the presidential estate, followed by about two chapters dealing with Tanaka's side of things, and then one more chapter, then the finale, and then an epilogue chapter. That plan could get adjusted (and probably will, judging from experience), but that will be the general flow. Also, fortunately the epilogue is already written; it just needs some minor tweaks, but it's in shipshape.**

 **I've also been working on a Haikyu outer space/war AU that I might start after Coup d'Etat is done. It will be massive, but I'm really excited by how it's looking so far and I'd definitely be applying some of the lessons I learned writing this story to make that one even better. Hope to see some of you there!**


	20. A Leader is Born

**At last, one of the most important chapters of the entire story is here. Enjoy!**

* * *

There were some things Taketora Yamamoto would wish on no man. Having Shoyo Hinata explain in excruciating detail how he'd survived your every attempt to murder him was one of those things.

"…But then, they attacked the convention center. And the police officer said they had a tank! And it made the building go 'kafoom,' and then it was like, 'grrrr,' and then we ran! How'd they get a tank, Sgt. Yamashita?"

Yamamoto jerked. The question, addressed to the alias he'd given, seemed to imply Shoyo knew Tora knew the answer, but the president's wide-eyed curiosity—discernible even in the afterglow left by Noya's flashlight in the lead—reassured him his cover was not blown.

"Well, uh, probably divisional headquarters, y'know?" he coyly answered, knowing full well that's where Kyotani had gotten said tank.

"Yeah, that makes sense," the president continued, the cute blonde girl Yachi grinning at her side.

At the lead, shining the only lit flashlight to conserve the batteries of the others, Yuu periodically peered back at the threesome. It was all too perfect, Noya rightly analyzed. This "Sgt. Takeshi Yamashita" claimed to have been blown underground by a dissident bomb blast, but Noya also couldn't kick the feeling he'd heard the sergeant's voice before. The man had no rank insignia on his shirt (fortunately for Yamamoto it was ripped off in the _actual_ bomb explosion), and Hinata was too enthralled with their self-titled rescuer for Noya to voice his suspicions.

As far as Tora was concerned, the presence of the athletic and adroit Libero was a major inconvenience. The president's bodyguard was obviously skeptical of him, and that forced Yamamoto to play it cool longer than anticipated while they ventured down an unexplored passageway in Ushiwaka's dilapidated labyrinth.

"Hey, Sgt. Yamashita," Hinata said after finally finishing his narrative, "do you think Tsukishima and Ambassador Nakashima are OK?"

Yamamoto jolted. Noya noticed the spasm, and Tora noticed he noticed.

"I mean, o-of course!" he stuttered. The darkness hid the sweat on his face, but the stammering made Nishinoya stop and shine his light on Tora, illuminating the stressful droplets. Nishinoya's hand hovered over his sidearm.

"Oh!" Shoyo blurted and skipped in the way of Noya's flashlight beam in front of Yamamoto. Tora prepared to draw his gun to shoot the president at pointblank while he still had his chance.

Then Yachi tripped on a dislodged rock and yelped beside Noya, frazzling both the Libero and the wannabe assassin. Nishinoya dashed beneath the falling girl and caught her lack a prince charming. Hinata sprinted to the pair to check if Yachi was OK, haplessly ruining Tora's opportunity to shoot the head of state. Further, sublimely multitasking, Noya's flashlight didn't flinch from illuminating Yamamoto even as the Libero was crouched underneath the president's secretary.

"I'm fine. I just slipped," Yachi assured while Hinata helped her up.

"You sure?" Hinata queried. Noya used the chance to refocus his gaze on Yamamoto. Now finally the president was by _his_ side and not the supposed sergeant's.

"Sgt. Yamashita-whatever," he querulously began. The name suddenly reminded Hinata of his original question, and he hopped over to the man again.

"Yeah! Sgt. Yamashita, why do these people want to kill me?"

The question shocked not only Yamamoto but Hitoka and Yuu as well.

"Well—ahem—" Tora coughed, sweating again. Hinata hadn't jumped in the way of the flashlight this time, so he was still in Noya's dagger-like sights. "Well, I dunno. M-maybe because you're so…hopeless?" He flinched at the choice of words, though it was the politest thing that had popped into his head to describe the infuriating nincompoop. His vision blinded by the flashlight beam, he couldn't see Hinata or Noya's reaction. Dang it, he thought as he readied to get his gun. He'd probably be felled by the Libero before taking his chance, but it was too late to back down now.

"Yeah, you're right," Shoyo astonishingly conceded. Yamamoto backed off from grabbing his weapon yet again. "I'm hopeless because I don't give up even when everyone says I'm wrong," Hinata blushed. The Prime Minister, Tobio Kageyama, had said that one time, and lately Hinata understood what the prime minister meant. He also now thought of Sawamura and wanted to ask about Daichi's and Tobio's wellbeings next.

But Yamamoto bit his lip. The head of state's ineptitude was more than he could tolerate anymore. Tora hadn't joined Kuroo on a whim. He wanted prestige, and that was a large part of it, but he was not enamored with the doofus of a leader the people had elected. And come what may, he felt the irrepressible urge to let the president know right now how he and many others felt about the pintsized poser.

"Y'wanna know why people wanna kill ya, huh? It's 'cause you're some helpless, little player talkin' peace and love who tries to boss people around like he owns the place and doesn't care that the country ain't what he thinks it is—and just assumes if he says somethin' enough times, people will get it and play along. And those people who wanna kill ya know full well you're a freakin' retard with no clue how to make your own bed or change your clothes, and they look around and see past all the twinkle-eyed dopes who voted for ya that nothin's gonna change 'cause no one wants it to change, and when people tell Mr. Happy-Pants that, you say 'Don't worry! It'll be fine!' and it just makes us want to puke!"

At this Noya drew his gun. Blinded by the flashlight, Tora couldn't see the weapon and wouldn't have cared anyway. Hinata was taken aback and stepping backwards; Yachi was frightened too. Still, Tora had just enough self-control left to reel it back a little bit:

"I'm not one of the bruhs who tried to kill ya or anythin', but I know how they is. You're some dumb, little kid stuck in a happy dream who don't wanna wake up and go to school, and people ain't gonna let you run everythin' to the ground no more. That's why they wanna kill ya. Got it?"

Yamamoto stood his focused solely on what he could see of Hinata's shocked face in the fringes of the flashlight.

And then, to everyone's surprise, Hinata meekly grinned:

"Yeah, you're right," he said. "I did want to make everyone happy, and I guess that was kind of stupid. I wanted lots of people from the war in the government, but since I knew I could trust the people I worked with, I thought of them first, so I wasn't as fair to people from Nekoma or the other groups as I should have been. And then there were bad people—like Bokuto, everyone said—but that didn't matter because, like people said, my dad worked for Ushiwaka and said he did bad things—but he betrayed Ushiwaka too, so I had to forgive everyone no matter what. And not everyone with bad pasts was evil, like Kenma. And I thought about listening to Asahi and Tanaka's concerns about people, but then everyone had bad things to say about everyone, even Kageyama and Sawamura, and it was because they just didn't like someone. So, yeah, I ignored it.

"And I know people tried to use me or wanted other things from me, but that's not true! Everyone said Aone had an agenda, but he just cares about his home. And Terushima wanted to help his family, even though people said he might not be loyal or whatever. And Kuroo helped us beat Ushiwaka, so I had to do something good for him even though some people said he'd changed or something after the war. And everyone— _everyone_ —said I shouldn't trust Oikawa, but…"

Realizing he had no counterargument to that point as he didn't like Oikawa either, Shoyo abandoned that train of thought. He stepped closer to Yamamoto, eyeing the man fiercely. The uncharacteristic confidence unnerved Tora immensely.

"…But if I just pushed bad people aside, then they'd just be mad and want to start another war. So I had to do nice things for everyone to prevent them from doing that. And I screwed up a lot, but that was my goal. And I wanted to listen to everyone too and let everyone have a say, but…I guess even Asahi doesn't understand. Only Sawamura. And Kageyama and Noya and Suga. They got it. But everyone else called me stupid, and a lot of people kept saying 'no'! And I wanted to give up. And I thought, if we couldn't get this deal with Kitagawa, I _would_ give up."

Hinata curled his hands into a fist and yelled his next statement to make a point to the obviously discontented sergeant. Shoyo had had enough of needless dissenters.

"But Kitagawa wants this deal, and so do I! So what if it pissed off the bad people? _I'm_ the one who was elected. Why?! Because people want something else! If people want to kill me for that, then it's because _they_ don't care about this country. They just care about themselves! Yeah, I suck as president! But guess what?! I _am_ president! So, get over it!"

Shoyo huffed angrily, turned around, and marched past Noya. Yuu and Hitoka gaped after Hinata, having never seen him this incensed before. Yuu flipped the flashlight around to illuminate the advancing premier. Left in the darkness, Tora had only one dreadful thought:

I've created a monster.

Shoyo looked back at Noya with a grumpy face.

"Noya, I can't see anything," he protested to the President Guard chief who was still standing put. Noya bolted to attention.

"Yes, sir!" he saluted and marched forward. Behind them another flashlight clicked on, which Tora used to illuminate Yachi and grab her. Before Noya and Hinata understood what was going on, Yamamoto had his arm around the woman's neck and a handgun jabbing her skull.

"Yachi!" Hinata cried.

"Drop the gun, Libero!" barked Tora. "Both of you. Or this pretty lady gets it."

Noya snarled. His daring dive to save Yachi from falling must have exposed his one admitted weakness: cute girls in distress.

"Shoyo," Yuu murmured. Hinata grunted, carefully lifted a gun from his pocket, and set it on the ground. Noya set down his own weapon carefully and then turned off and let go of his flashlight on Tora's command. Yamamoto smirked.

"Good. Now, this one's for Lev."

Noya recognized the phrase from the man who answered Ennoshita's phone yesterday evening, and now Yuu realized—too late—where he'd heard Yamamoto's voice. In a moment, a bullet struck his leg.

"Noya!" Shoyo squealed. Nishinoya fell to a knee, and Yamamoto aimed at the president.

"And this is for making my life a living hell."

"Shoyo!" screeched the wounded Libero who leapt on top of the president, taking a bullet in the back. Shoyo stumbled with Noya atop while Tora discharged the rest of his clip into the two bodies on the ground. Several bullets pounded Nishinoya's back, legs, and arms, perfectly shielding the president from injury.

Shoyo opened his eyes to see Yuu over him, wearing a pained smile with a streak of blood from the corner of his mouth. "Y'OK?" mumbled Noya. "I'm s'posed to protec'ja, right?" His eyes rolled back before his head thudded on Hinata's chest. Yuu's body slid sideways to the ground as the petrified president scrambled backward. Yamamoto cackled hysterically after reloading.

"There! The famous Libero who s'posedly killed 20 people all by himself in some Ushiwakan bunker— _downed_ by a few, measly potshots." He guffawed again and aimed at the exposed president. "And once I'm done with you, I think I'll play with this chick of yours before I kill her too."

At that, Yachi immediately struggled enough to allow her to gnash her teeth into Tora's wrist. Tora squealed and tried to shake off the woman whose bite was as strong as a ravenous canine's. Shoyo darted for his handgun on the ground. Once Yamamoto released Hitoka who sprinted away, Shoyo took aim and fired.

"You little witch!" Tora cried aiming his gun into the darkness after Yachi when the president's bullet punctured his thigh. He collapsed to hands and knees. Hinata now drew his own flashlight and illuminated the space where Tora had been to observe the damage. Yamamoto arched backwards and fired in the direction of the flashlight beam, having dropped his own light when Hitoka bit him. The bullet ricocheted off Shoyo's torch and buzzed the president's cheek. Hinata dropped his gun and the flashlight, stumbling onto his butt.

"Not this time," Yamamoto slurred. "This time, _I_ win."

Just then, Hitoka appeared behind him holding Tora's discarded flashlight and swung it onto Yamamoto's skull. He crumpled forward in pain. Yachi threw the blunt object away, and she and Hinata both sprinted into the darkness madly, so brazenly they left all weapons and illumination behind.

They couldn't see a thing and didn't consider the risk of more sinkholes or worse. Instead, after running barely a tenth of a mile, they collided brutally with a solid brick wall.

They'd reached the exit of the tunnel, but like so many other former entrances, it had been permanently sealed shut.

Light from behind began to filter in as a limping Tora neared, leaning against the wall.

"Forget it, Prez. Yer done."

Hinata yanked Yachi and threw his hands over her head to protect her.

"Hey, Yachi, uh, you know, I've always thought you were kinda, uh, cute…."

Yamamoto grinned as he prepared to fire.

"Who's there?! Freeze!"

A distant voice echoed through the tunnel from far behind. Despite the threat, the speaker was too far away to possibly see Yamamoto, Hinata, and Yachi. What made the voice more terrifying though was that Tora unmistakably recognized the speaker: Inuoka.

"Curse you, you freakin' idiot," Tora griped to Hinata, "but who cares? I'll just kill ya and yer slut girlfriend, and then I'll kill Sou, and then I'll kill everyone else who tries to catch me."

He grinned, ready to fire. Hinata and Yachi clamped their eyelids shut. A bullet rang out, but to Shoyo and Hitoka's shock, it didn't hit either of them.

They inched open their eyes to see the beam of Yamamoto's flashlight on the ground. Tora was prostrate, moaning, a short human silhouette looming over him:

Noya.

"For your information," Yuu swayed, bleeding in several places and evidently on his last leg, "everyone's wrong. I didn't kill 20 people in a bunker…. I killed 21." And then, he plodded with a lifeless thud behind the wounded Yamamoto. Yuu had accomplished his mission to protect the president, and that was that.

Tora sniveled, Nishinoya's projectile having pierced his spine and seemingly paralyzed his legs. In abject shock, Hinata arose and stomped on the wrist of the groveling Tora until he let go of his pistol. Hinata commandeered it and aimed at Yamamoto's head. Inuoka's group called, sprinting desperately closer. Shoyo was about to head back to Yachi when Tora clasped his ankle.

"Shoot me, please," he begged, the thought of being imprisoned far worse than dying. But Shoyo snorted indignantly.

"I want to," he sniveled as tears rolled from his own eyes, "but I want the world to see what happens to scum like you." He jerked his leg out of Tora's grip and rejoined Hitoka who smiled shyly.

"Thanks," she said. Hinata blushed brightly.

"F-f-for what?"

"For what you said," Hitoka vaguely stated. They had no chance to continue the conversation as Inuoka and the rescue squad arrived on scene.

* * *

With no radio signal underground, the group rushed to Chidoriyama as fast as they could. Ikejiri lit up with a mix of relief and despair upon sight of Inuoka, the president and Yachi. A Humvee screeched to a halt behind Ikejiri, and from it, Gen. Narita peeked out.

"Mr. President," he barked firmly, "you need to get inside please." There was no hesitation as Lt.-Gen. Inuoka ushered in the president and Yachi. Behind them, the injured Tora was raised out of the shaft on a stretcher, followed by Noya's body covered by a sheet. Kazuhito felt sick at the sight of another casualty, though he didn't yet know who it was. Eyeing Inuoka talking with the police chief Ikejiri and Inuoka's deputy, Narita decided he needed as many people as he could trust. "Inuoka! Put your deputy in charge and come too!"

Sou saluted. Before he entered the Humvee, Ikejiri whispered a shocking message in Sou's ear.

Once Inuoka was in the vehicle with the others, it sped away. Chidoriyama's cratered runways were useless for aircraft, so they were bound for the nearest functional runway where a jet was waiting.

"What's going on?" Shoyo inquired. Narita cringed.

"I don't even know where to begin. But we're going to Yukigaoka City."

"Is this about Gen. Sugawara being captured?" Inuoka asked, revealing Ikejiri's disturbing message. Hinata shuddered at the statement.

"Yes, but," Narita grimaced, "it's actually not that bad. Or depending on how you look at it, it's far worse."

"We have to save him!" Hinata insisted.

"We will," Narita assured, "but this is part of the plan. He let himself get captured."

* * *

 **RIP**

 **I can't believe I killed off Noya actually. I love Noya.**

 **In other news, I'm working on combining the next two planned chapters. We're approaching the endgame!**

 **And what on earth has Suga done now? But let me just say if anyone could throw a wrench in Suga's plans at this point, it's Oikawa... Not insinuating anything, but...**


	21. The Con Artist

**To think when I started this story, there were supposed to be only ten chapters. Chapters 1-3 remained roughly the same; Chapters 4 and 5 were expanded to three chapters; the original Chapter 6 became chapters 7 and 8; Chapter 7 became chapter 10; Chapter 8 became chapter 15; and Chapter 9 became chapter 20. I jettisoned Chapter 10 and my original finale a long time ago, so the new planned finale will bear very little resemblance. For now, the climax forever approaches.**

* * *

Acting President Ryunosuke Tanaka was furious. An hour after Sugawara eluded Gen. Ukai, Kageyama's goons released a new video. This one, to Ryu's abject shock, showed Sugawara as a hostage and threatened his execution if Saeko's advance on Ministry Street wasn't curtailed. At the sight of the People's General facing certain death, morale dropped instantly, and the Tanaka siblings had to relent. Ryu thought he'd pull his hair out if it were long enough to grab: to think Suga would actually let himself get captured just to undermine his prerogative to kill the traitors by his own hands.

But the fact remained. Suga had gotten one up on him, and he couldn't accomplish his objectives with the popular Koshi's life on the line. The ceasefire bought more time for Hinata to legally reassume control of the state, but, in the claustrophobic office at Sakanoshita Ryu had commandeered as his personal space, the acting president smirked. Saeko, looking on patiently, thought he was going mad.

"Nothing's changed. If Narita finds Hinata before we're done, then we persuade him to remain invisible for his own safety. That's that."

"So what are you gonna do about Suga?" asked Saeko. She was skeptical her brother had an idea.

"Simple!" he proclaimed. "We rescue him like the heroes we are, and then we blow those devils heads off!"

"No duh, dimwit," Saeko bunted. "So how're you gonna find him is my question."

"I'm workin' on it, you dope!" What he meant to say was he had no clue. Then on the desk, Terushima's wife's cell phone pinged. As if believing the sudden text message would hold the key to locating Sugawara, he grabbed the phone.

"That phone ain't gonna help you, man," Saeko ridiculed as Ryu gaped at the display. Then, he giggled.

"Oh, really?" he sneered and displayed the text message:

 _I'll tell you where Suga is if you free Hana_

"How could you ever doubt me?"

* * *

He had told Oikawa he needed to use the bathroom, and Toru peculiarly obliged. Then Terushima's shoddy escape plan began. It wasn't so much a plan really. He calmly exited through the front door, hoping to walk off the premises of the presidential estate without issue. When he was stopped at the outer gate that led directly onto Ministry Street, he correctly identified himself as the minister of communications and said he was dispatched on an important mission by the acting president. He huffily dared the guard to call his superiors and verify.

Unfortunately, the guard did just that; and a few minutes later, Terushima was being professionally escorted back to the foyer at the request of Lt.-Gen. Iwaizumi—allegedly to have one more debrief. Yuji knew he was in trouble.

As was procedure since the broadcast debacle, Terushima's escorts knocked on the foyer door. Iwaizumi cracked it open, took Terushima inside, and thanked the guards. Yuji stood by the door, hands in his pocket, trying to act normal. Iwaizumi sauntered back to Toru's side, the latter far too comfortably squatting sideways in an armchair. His legs dangled over one side of the chair while the other armrest served as a solid pillow for his upper back. He was staring at a smartphone—Terushima's own in fact—but Yuji was too nervous to notice.

"I _thought_ that was a really long dump," Oikawa grumbled without making eye contact.

"Look. I don't give a darn about your stupid insurrection. You think I'm gonna let myself die?"

"Even after seeing her protesting against you, you were going to Hana, weren't you?" Oikawa said gravely. Terushima pursed his lips.

"None o' your business," he grumbled.

"Ryu arrested her," Oikawa said. Now he cast his eyes squarely on the communications minister, whose shock was apparent.

"Don't lie about that."

"See for yourself." Toru held out the pilfered phone for Yuji to take and read the message string. "And he's going to release her," he added as Terushima shakily grasped the phone.

He quickly thumbed through the conversation, in too much shock to be angry that Toru had been impersonating him. Toru had disclosed Sugawara's location—the Shinzen Shopping Center—in exchange for Hana's release. He'd even revealed that Suga was in one of the storerooms on the top floor. Hana's release was conditional on Suga's successful recovery, which it was obvious Ryu intended to effect militarily.

"You see?" Oikawa continued. "If Ryu had caught you and questioned you about this, they'd have assumed it was a hoax, and then your ticket to redemption would be forfeit."

"But…why?!" cried an incredulous Terushima.

"You said it yourself," replied Oikawa matter-of-factly. "Because it's over. Tobio won't admit it though, but you and I are on the same page."

Terushima froze, appearing to be quietly contemplating the situation. Toru gave him a few seconds of space before requesting Yuji's phone back, on the grounds that, if Ryu texted again, only he possessed enough information to keep up the charade. Terushima hesitated but with a gulp surrendered the device.

"Yuji, here's the deal, but you must tell no one," Oikawa continued. "Once Ryu has rescued Suga, we're going to launch our own coup against Tobio. We'll then hand him over to Ryu in exchange for amnesty for the rest of us. Are you in?"

"Um, you bet I am," Terushima said with a nervous grin.

"For your own safety, you'll have to stay in the estate. Iwa's already instructed his soldiers not to lose sight of you, so we can be sure of where you are when things get messy." At this, Iwaizumi proceeded to the door. There were already two soldiers waiting in the hall outside, apparently to escort Yuji to another space. "Those two'll protect you from any fanatics in the regiment if they resist our takeover. I'll let you know how things are progressing."

Terushima issued a thumbs-up. "You got it," he smirked, though in his head he was calling Oikawa a few nasty names.

Then, as soon as Terushima was gone, Iwaizumi sternly faced Oikawa.

"Obviously, most of what you said isn't true," Hajime challenged.

Using his palms as a pillow behind his skull, Toru beamed at the ceiling.

"The fact he tried to walk out of here means his loyalty is shot, so I had to do something drastic to turn him around." He sighed. "Too bad now he's blown any chance of getting out of this alive."

"You're not worried about him knowing your exchanges with Tanaka?"

"As long as he doesn't know that the location we gave Ryu is phony, what's the problem?" He stretched dramatically and sat up properly in the chair. "Yuji's stunt just ate up our time. Ryu will be rushing to rescue Suga. And once he violates the ceasefire, then we announce Suga's pending execution. And _then_ we overthrow Tobio to save the general's life."

"But you aren't really going to let Sugawara live, are you?"

Oikawa shook his head disingenuously as he began to poignantly narrate the future turn of events. "It was a sad situation. We tried to stop Suga's execution, but by the time we reached him, he was already…." He sniffled as he trailed off. "I want to cry just thinking about it."

"It hasn't happened yet, you psycho," jabbed Iwa.

"You've been real nice to me this whole time, so can't you keep it up a little bit?" squirmed Oikawa. "Anyway, Suga no doubt spoke to Kenma and probably isn't towing Ryu's line about 'Tobio the Terrible.' He probably suspects I'm the culprit. He'd have to be an idiot to walk up to one of Yutaro's checkpoints with hands raised if he _didn't_ believe I was in charge: most people in our shoes would have just killed him on the spot, but Suga knows I could never pass up such a valuable pawn—the little rat." He made a bulging fist; for all of his love of using people, Toru hated being used himself. It was perhaps fortunate, at least, that the two of them equally benefited from Tanaka being temporarily reeled in—in Toru's case, that bought more time to learn Hinata's status, information that would determine his final move. "Anyway, I'm positive Yuji won't try to escape now—he's too lovesick for that. That just leaves the other matter to be resolved before you go off and commit suicide."

"Could you not be so casual about killing me off?" Iwaizumi chafed.

"It's your own fault for showing your face when you shut down HBC," protested Toru.

"You said, 'make it dramatic.'"

"You know what I meant!"

Iwaizumi glared. He wanted to retort, "Nobody knows what you mean," but knew it was pointless. He was just quietly glad that his best friend and compatriot was only asking him to _fake_ his death.

"I don't see why you're so angry anyway," Toru resumed. "After all, you don't have to make it scientifically provable or anything: just something that no one can verify in a short amount of time, or at least no one can verify until we've accomplished what we need. Which reminds me: don't forget that if Shrimpy is alive, I'll need you for the finale, when we bury him for good.

"But anyway," he postured, "stop stalling and watch Tobio, so I can have a talk with Yutaro."

* * *

Terushima was taken to an office on the north side of the building. The first thing he did was protest the room was too stuffy and asked for a window to be opened. The guard grumpily cracked one and left without a word. Terushima heard the sound of a key locking the door.

He peered out the second-story window. There was a hedgerow directly below. After checking the coast was clear, he opened the pane wider and tenuously maneuvered himself out.

Landing in the bushes was a lot more painful than he anticipated, not the least from being pricked a thousand times by twigs. He knew going out the front gate was a no-no, so he clumsily mounted the perimeter wall. Iwaizumi had deployed a good chunk of the 1st Division to the perimeter or to the task of incorporating the regiments of Aone's 11th Division, leaving the presidential estate much more sparsely guarded than it had been at daybreak.

He kept running through alleys, finding cover where he could. Before Sugawara's mysterious surrender, an anonymous message was sent to all social media accounts associated with the coup. It warned: "Do not trust your leaders." Seeing it on the laptop in the foyer, Terushima ignored it as an effort to sow confusion. However, when he took a break to check his personal account while Sugawara's hostage video uploaded, he found the same message addressed privately to him.

Except this time, its sender was not anonymous. It was Koshi Sugawara.

"Do not trust your leader." This time, the object of the sentence was singular, not plural, as if to tell Yuji he was referring to someone in particular. It was obviously Oikawa, but at the time Terushima merely said to himself, "No, duh!", and deleted the message so Toru wouldn't see it.

But now, Terushima knew what Sugawara really meant: Toru Oikawa was a well-worn con artist. The man's bogus claim to be looking out for Yuji's wellbeing was one of many outright lies. Yuji didn't know what Oikawa's real plot and was determined not to stick around to find out. He would get to Tanaka himself and expose Oikawa for the crook he was.

And so, Yuji Terushima made his way to the only place he could think to go: Shinzen Shopping Center. Since Tanaka would soon raid the mall in order to rescue Sugawara, the rescue was the perfect time to let himself be captured and prove his sincerity. He would shortly regret his choice to believe that piece of information from the already untrustworthy Oikawa.

* * *

 **Oikawa, Tanaka, Sugawara-whose scheme will succeed? And will Terushima screw up all three of their plans? Leave your thoughts below about who's going to come out on top, and when-or if-Hinata will arrive to throw a wrench in everyone's plots.**


	22. Pawns

**Apologies for how long this took. Real life was extremely demanding lately. But to my surprise (praise God), I was still able to get this out sooner than expected given RL! Believe it or not!**

 **And thank you again to Escana for your suggestions on who hasn't appeared in the fic. He was a much better choice than the previous character I was leaning towards for this role. :) And I introduced him a chapter early even!**

* * *

In that stuffy room on the second floor of the presidential estate, time ticked monotonously. Tobio had taken Hinata's chair and used it as a seat to stare out the window at the back plaza. He felt criminal to be occupying the president's chair but rationalized that he was protecting it from Oikawa. That had been his intention, right? Cooperate with Oikawa in order to sabotage him?

Was that really going to work?

Would the _alternative_ have worked? He'd already had this debate internally plenty of times, so he knew his answer to the last question.

In one of two other chairs in the room, on the other side of the desk, sat Lt.-Gen. Kindaichi. He'd long ago holstered his gun, convinced Kageyama was no escape risk, and now tapped his feet, regularly peering at the clock. Sequestered in the room, he had no clue of the goings-on outside. Iwaizumi had been appointed commander of all units protecting the government district and, since Kuroo's fall (not that Kindaichi knew it), of all friendly forces in Yukigaoka City. Frankly he hated knowing so little.

But he'd known very little from the start.

Tobio heard Yutaro snort in frustration, one of the few breaks in silence over the hours. Tobio swung his chair around to spy the officer guarding him, glaring accusatively, to which Yutaro took offense.

Kageyama tried to read his duplicitous custodian. He was positive about what the man had whispered right before the abortive broadcast: "I can't believe you're doing this."

Tobio had spent much time analyzing that statement. He avoided asking directly about it mostly from fear—an irrational fear that Oikawa had ears everywhere and would somehow find out if they were plotting against him. Naturally Oikawa was too smart to allow anyone harboring dissent to be alone with Kageyama, so there must be a backup plan in place. Tobio even speculated that the mere fear of Oikawa finding out might be the backup plan.

But was Kindaichi really an enemy of Oikawa? Maybe he was _happily_ surprised at Kageyama's decision. Yutaro was one of the few people who Oikawa had made his complicity known to after all—to such a degree that he helped stage a siege of Toru's estate in an elaborate attempt to force Kageyama's hand. What was this man's deal? And more importantly, for as much as he certainly did know, how much had Oikawa maybe not disclosed?

There was no harm in asking that much, Tobio finally figured. At least it would start a conversation with the man he fought alongside in the days of the Aoba Johsai Liberation Army.

"So, what's your role in all this?"

Yutaro scowled at the question he perceived as intrusive.

"What's it matter to you, _Prez_?" It was obviously a sore remark. Yup, Kindaichi was miffed at Tobio's choice, not delighted. And now that the ball was rolling, might as well keep it rolling, Tobio figured.

"What? You don't think I should be here?"

Kindaichi glared. Truthfully, with them having so much time alone, he'd wondered why Kageyama hadn't broached the matter sooner.

"Perhaps I don't," Yutaro said coyly, purposefully not volunteering too much information. The door could open at any minute, he feared.

"What was Oikawa going to do with me if this thing had worked?"

Kindaichi scrutinized Kageyama intensely, hoping to decipher where this was leading. He felt like Tobio intentionally asked a question that Kindaichi himself had been denied the answer, as if to rub it in. It made his blood boil.

"What?" Kageyama smirked. "You can't be _that_ clueless." Yutaro gave him the cold shoulder, piquing Tobio's interest. "You mean he didn't tell you? Was he really going to let me be president?"

"No," grunted Yutaro. That much was a given.

"Oh, so you _do_ know something."

Kindaichi grimaced. "You knew that, and yet you're sitting here?" he rebutted. Tobio was almost elated by his cohort's annoyance.

"Of course," Tobio settled. "I was going to take Oikawa down myself." Kindaichi shrank back skeptically.

"You really thought that would work?" That put Kageyama in a moment of thought. No, Oikawa would never let Kageyama destroy him. The prime minister knew that from the moment he'd agreed to collude but perpetually ignored it—for one reason and one reason only.

"What other choice did I have?" he shrugged.

"You could have said no."

"Could I have?" Tobio cocked his head. The retort stifled the lieutenant-general. They both knew full well their predicament. Oikawa would never allow the people close to him to destroy him. Not Kageyama.

And not Kindaichi.

"It's obvious Oikawa wanted me to take the fall for killing Hinata," Kageyama continued. "He would have arranged that whether I joined him or not. All that matters is he conceals his hand in all this. That way, he'll come out on top." He glared at Kindaichi. "Am I right?'

Yutaro said nothing, but his expression confirmed Kageyama was on the money.

"What? Don't tell me you didn't even know _that_ much," Tobio pressed, leaning over the desk. Yutaro glanced away stoically. "You really _don't_ , do you?" Kageyama continued with a grin. "Strange. I pegged you on the same tier as Iwaizumi, but you're just a pawn like me and everyone else."

"And what's your point?" bucked Kindaichi.

"That Oikawa doesn't even trust _you_."

"Shut up."

"So you were hoping I'd refuse to join Oikawa. Well then, why support him if you don't want him to be in charge?"

"I wanted him to depose Hinata, and—." His chin sank, unwilling to say the rest. Kageyama focused on his foe. His face was a haunting, grinning stare he often used in cabinet meetings to dare his opponents to speak up.

"And?" he voiced. Kindaichi regretted ever adding the conjunction.

"And…I wanted you to be president." His face became red, and he avoided eye contact. It was actually a shock to Kageyama; he and Kindaichi had never really gotten along before after all.

Kindaichi knew from the start Oikawa was a manipulator extraordinaire but felt he was the only person who could successfully oust Hinata and his powerbase. His personality traits were the same reasons Oikawa could not be in charge, however, but by the time Kindaichi realized it, it was too late. That was when he began to recognize that Kageyama—the man who had figured out Oikawa could not be stopped by his own party and therefore joined the enemy's party—was the real person to lead.

As far as opposing Oikawa, however, truth be told, he knew it could never be as simple as he envisioned. And yes, it was stupid of him to think Kageyama simply had the liberty to refuse to cooperate with the power-mad deputy prime minister, who was only given the title so the government could keep an eye on him while hoping it was enough prestige to appease him.

Kindaichi now began to wonder. Toru had led or joined most efforts in opposition to Hinata's political agenda. Those efforts, many successful in watering down or even sabotaging the president's plans, had helped wither his effectiveness, cut down his spirit, and awaken the skeptical opposition. That's how people like Aone and Kenma had been brought into the fold or dared to consider it.

Kindaichi's stomach began to feel sick as he pondered the unthinkable.

Had Oikawa been planning this from the moment he lost the election?

Then, after chuckling quietly for a while, Tobio burst out with a guffaw that he quickly reigned in to prevent drawing attention from the adjacent foyer.

"That's the first time you've ever said anything nice to me," he teased.

Kindaichi snorted indignantly. He was reluctant to challenge Toru Oikawa, and Kageyama certainly couldn't blame him for that. But with things certainly collapsing even more since their sequestering, perhaps if he could persuade Kindaichi to jump ship, there was a chance of successfully defeating the mastermind. "So if Oikawa doesn't trust you—"

Kageyama's statement was cut off when the door opened. Kindaichi was more surprised than he should have been when standing in the threshold was, of all people, Iwaizumi.

"Kindaichi," his fellow officer began, "let's swap."

Foiled again, Kageyama thought.

* * *

Iwaizumi, in stern silence, guarded Kageyama with the barrel of a gun while Kindaichi met with Toru alone. He took note of the minute changes in the layout of the room, particular a closed laptop on the floor; Kindaichi didn't think it characteristic that either Oikawa or Iwa would have been using it while it sitting on the carpet.

In a few minutes, Oikawa selectively summarized the situation, divulging enough information to make Yutaro think he knew the full lay of the land while omitting anything not immediately necessary. Almost everything pertaining to Terushima or the imminent raid on Shinzen were left unsaid; he needed Kindaichi's vow of fidelity to the "overthrow" of Tobio Kageyama first. Iwaizumi was the only person Oikawa truly trusted.

In fact, Toru had suspected from the moment Kindaichi proposed inviting Kageyama into their conspiracy that his loyalties were failing.

However, Yutaro had not done anything outright opposed to the coup as yet. Perhaps this was one thing Oikawa was too nervous about. After all, Yutaro was a pragmatist, just like himself. That's what made Kindaichi so agreeable.

"Naturally I don't need your cooperation, Yutaro," Toru smirked languidly in his favorite armchair. He slyly removed a handgun hidden in his suit and spun it around his finger by the trigger guard. "But I'm sure you also know that if you don't join me in ousting Kageyama,"—he spun the gun into his fist suavely, pointing it at Yutaro—"you'll become a victim of it."

He grinned sinisterly. Yutaro frowned. Toru didn't have the naiveté towards him that he futilely hoped, and he felt the same futility that Tobio had spoken of.

The choices were obvious. The first was present Kageyama as a scapegoat in exchange for everyone's amnesty. Toru promised airtight alibis, especially important since Kindaichi had been publicly named one of the lead quislings. The second was his own expiry, pointlessly liquidated in a Potemkin village-esque coup.

Kindaichi inhaled deeply. In fact, Oikawa's plot really had a chance of working. Not that he knew the details, but he knew Oikawa's superhuman ability to scheme. The man was surely honest that Kindaichi would be exonerated of any wrongdoing. No doubt somehow this action would lead to Oikawa's supremacy in the end, but it would be Yutaro's salvation.

And with Hinata gone—as Oikawa claimed to have accomplished in Tokonami—maybe there was chance for Kageyama to usurp Oikawa after all.

The door to the president's office opened, revealing Iwaizumi again interrupting.

"Are you done? I need to leave," he said bluntly.

"How rude!" exclaimed Oikawa before he pouted. "Fine. Bring Tobio in here, and get out of here."

Kindaichi gawked while Iwaizumi led Tobio at gunpoint to a chair near Oikawa and plopped him down.

"Don't worry, Yutaro," Oikawa sneered. "I'll get your answer later."

* * *

After Iwaizumi's unexplained departure, Kindaichi took command of the military. Oikawa had created a system to exclude all outside interaction with himself to keep his identity as secret as possible. Iwaizumi and now Kindaichi carried out all conversations with messengers by cracking the foyer door and letting no one see or come inside. Oikawa positioned himself so that he could overhear most chatter. Kageyama had been located farther away so that at normal volume he could hear nothing.

One thing Kindaichi quickly realized was truly how precious little he knew, even after Oikawa's debrief. He began to question Oikawa on several matters as they arose, including Sugawara's whereabouts, the attack on HBC, the loss of Tokonami, what Tanaka was likely to do in the face of the ceasefire (Toru was coy about much information in Kageyama's presence but completely lied in his response to this question), and—reacting to the laptop on the floor—Terushima's current location.

The mention of the communications minister made Oikawa realize Iwaizumi foolishly neglected to relay where they were guarding him. If Terushima was to tragically die in the counterrevolution, then his whereabouts must be known. Kindaichi dispatched a guard outside the door to verify the location. Toru incessantly complained how long it was taking. In fact, Kindaichi noticed Oikawa was becoming increasingly conscious and worried about the time.

The guard returned four minutes later. Kindaichi answered the frantic knocking on the door, confused by the urgency. Cracking it open, he beheld the guard leaning forward, panting.

"Lieutenant-General, Yuji Terushima is gone," he huffed. "He appears to have jumped out a window."

Oikawa snapped forward, mouthing several curse words under his breath as he tried to figure out what would make Terushima escape. He instinctively blamed Sugawara. Kindaichi peered at his boss who frenziedly waved to close the door.

"Thank you," Kindaichi mumbled and shut the door before the guard could request orders as far as searching for the escapee. Oikawa began to pace crazily.

"How the freak?!"

"Not everyone will play along with your fantasies," Kageyama quipped. He was thinking partly of Kindaichi when he said that. But, as Yutaro merely looked on stunned, Oikawa marched towards Kageyama, pulled his handgun, and rammed the butt into Kageyama's left eye. Tobio rolled out of the chair, covering his wounded eye socket while Toru heaved.

"All right. Plan C!" Toru gnawed furiously. He spun the barrel of the gun to face the quivering man on the ground who peeked out his good eye. "Yutaro!"

Kindaichi jolted.

"We're taking Tobio out of here. Are you with me or not?"

Yutaro took a step back. Kageyama peered at Kindaichi. Both men silently wanted Kindaichi to make opposing choices. And whichever choice he made would probably lead to someone's death: in one case, Kageyama's; in another, Kindaichi's.

For Kageyama, to leave the presidential estate would spell his doom. Here, his location was known, and he had the opportunity to be rescued. Anywhere else, and Oikawa had complete impunity: Tobio would live only as long as Toru's whim.

Kindaichi shook. He didn't expect things to go like this. Rather, he'd expected the hapless Hinata to be crushed in one fell swoop; maybe that itself was a foolish expectation.

His most foolish expectation, though, was expecting Kageyama to dare to oppose a chess master like Oikawa.

If Kindaichi killed Oikawa now—assuming Toru didn't swing up his gun and fire first—he'd have to contend with Iwaizumi. The soldiers in the building were Iwaizumi's men, so he may very well have to contend with an entire battalion singlehandedly.

He couldn't help but feel Toru, for every little misstep, had nevertheless set the whole thing up.

He calmed himself and pointedly gazed into Kageyama's beckoning stare.

"What other choice do I have?" he said.

* * *

Though it was not the location of Sugawara's detention, the three-floor Shinzen Shopping Center, in one of the wealthier suburbs of Yukigaoka City, was important in its own right. It had become a makeshift POW camp housing soldiers captured last night and defectors from Aone's forces. It was also the operational headquarters for Lt. Shigeru Yahaba's 19th Regiment. The facility was not heavily guarded though, with most troops redeployed to the outskirts, and most of Yahaba's skeletal headquarters company guarded the prisoners in the food court on the ground floor of the mall's roof-high atrium.

Into this mess, around one in the afternoon, entered Lt.-Gen. Hajime Iwaizumi.

"General, what brings you here?" Lt. Yahaba greeted, bowing.

"At ease," Iwa grunted. He commanded Yahaba to follow him, which the lieutenant did with perturbation.

The 19th Regiment was part of Kindaichi's 5th Division, but for most of the day Iwaizumi had been giving the orders, with no concern for Yahaba's tactical situation. There were plenty of holes in his sector of the perimeter even with most of his forces on the frontline. The ceasefire was the only thing that saved Shinzen from being retaken. It would be easy for a small force to sneak in undetected though, so Yahaba was glad that there was little strategic value to the mall.

Even so, the lieutenant-general's arrival came unannounced, and that bothered him. He didn't much like Lt.-Gen. Iwaizumi anyway.

The pair mounted a stalled escalator to the second floor, which had a balcony that overlooked the food court. Iwaizumi scanned the span of prisoners again before speaking.

"The second one from the left, near the guard with the submachine gun," Iwaizumi pointed. "Bring him up here."

Yahaba was confused but yelled down to the officer in charge of the prisoners. Iwaizumi pointedly stepped away from the railing as if not to be noticed by anyone glancing up. A soldier transported the chosen detainee to the commanding officers on the second floor. Iwaizumi immediately took possession and jabbed his gun into the detainee's back. The sudden aggressiveness displeased Yahaba.

"Care if I inquire of your intentions?" he queried with thinly veiled suspicion.

"I will interrogate him. There are storerooms on the third floor, correct?" Hajime pushed. Yahaba frowned. This didn't look like the beginning of an interrogation.

"Yes, I'll show you," Yahaba declared, leading the way to the mall's top floor to keep tabs on what was about to happen. Shigeru's future was questionable enough, and to be implicated in murdering prisoners on top of that was definitely not on his agenda.

Behind the rows of stores on every floor was a contiguous hallway used by mall employees. Adjoining the hallways were many backrooms for storing supplies. One of them behind a vacant storefront was virtually empty.

"This will do," Hajime declared as he entered the space. "Return to your men."

"I have a question, sir," interjected Yahaba.

"Go ahead," Hajime offered, reminded that the young upstart was too petulant for his liking.

"What is the situation on Ministry Street?"

"That is not your business. Your job is to defend this place," Iwaizumi glared.

Shigeru scowled. He knew he would get no straight answer and also knew the poor detainee's fate. Iwaizumi tried his best not to get consternated as he couldn't afford to waste any more time. Yahaba didn't know it, but Tanaka's troops would likely arrive any minute if they weren't already here. Hajime silently wished the lieutenant a merciless demise at the hands of Ryu's lackeys.

Then Yahaba's radio sputtered.

"Lieutenant, we've captured a trespasser outside the mall!"

"I'll be down!" Yahaba spat back instinctively and glared at Iwaizumi. "Since this is my compound and my prisoner, I deserve to be present for your interrogation," he challenged.

"You may, if you return quickly," Iwaizumi nodded. Yahaba snorted and briskly marched away, feeling unable to spend more time haggling with the superior officer.

Hajime faced the prisoner. There would be no interrogation, but Iwaizumi wouldn't have waited on the obnoxious junior even if there was one. He forced the prisoner to kneel and then stuck his gun to the back of his skull.

Among the POWs at Shinzen, this particular man unluckily bore a similar stature to the lieutenant-general himself. Iwaizumi would swap identification, rank insignia, and any other identifying garb, and then use a grenade to make the man's face unrecognizable while looking like a suicide. Himself donning the prisoner's uniform, Hajime would integrate into the enemy during the raid before getting away to rejoin Oikawa.

Getting away would be the hard part: if the "trespasser" belonged to Tanaka's band, then Hajime was well behind schedule. Only as long as no one, including Yahaba, knew what was about to take place, things could be salvaged.

* * *

Yahaba clamored down the defaulted escalator to the second floor where his adjutant met him.

"What about the new prisoner?" Yahaba inquired hastily.

"He's downstairs," the aide said, leading the lieutenant to the first floor. "He told us his identity, and we've verified it: he's the Minister of Communications, Yuji Terushima."

* * *

 **Let me know what you think!**

 **Next time: "The Battle for Shinzen Mall." We are, by my calculation, six chapters from the end!**


	23. The Battle for Shinzen Mall

**What is this? Five days since I posted the last chapter? Fastest I've ever gotten a new chapter out! Woo!**

 **And apologies in advance to fans who haven't read the manga. As much as I wanted to avoid it, I finally had to resort to manga characters for an important (two important) roles in this chapter. I'm actually not caught up on the manga myself (I'm following the official releases in USA, which are up to chapter 206 as of today), so I only know these characters from spoilers. They seemed kind of popular, which is why I picked them, but I don't really know their personalities, so forgive me if the characterization is off.**

 **Without** **further ado...**

* * *

Keishin Ukai took a long and soothing drag. After consulting with Ryu and Saeko about Terushima's tip on Sugawara's location, he approved their proposed rescue operation. The Tanaka siblings also put forth the unit for the task, and Keishin assented to their pick as well. Behind-enemy-lines operations were no cakewalks, and there was only one force in their military capable of a mission of this magnitude. A few of that elite unit's members comprised the platoon that overran HBC last night. The rest of the detachment, with its infamous co-commanders, subsequently arrived in Yukigaoka City with the rest of Saeko's 4th Division. It had the leadership, training, and equipment necessary for this critical operation. Success was guaranteed.

Ukai's desk phone rang. He gave the caller ID a cursory glance and decided to answer.

"Narita, what is it?" he said.

"General, I have someone who'd like to speak to you," Kazuhito Narita said on the other end. The 4th Army commander didn't wait for a reply before handing the phone off.

"General," spoke a young voice with an unusual tone of gravity. Ukai flinched.

"M-Mr. President?" he shivered.

* * *

Spying with binoculars from a building opposite the Shinzen Shopping Center's main entrance, the co-commander of the elite Miya Company, Capt. Atsumu Miya, carefully surveyed the happenings in the front courtyard. A male in a business suit, quickly IDed as Yuji Terushima, had been detained by a soldier patrolling the perimeter. The soldier spotted the quisling dashing towards the mall like a complete idiot.

"They're taking him inside," Atsumu radioed.

On the mall's opposite flank, Atsumu's identical twin brother and company co-commander Capt. Osamu Miya also surveyed the structure. There were only three soldiers and an officer outside the structure now: two soldiers and the officer at the front and one soldier at the back. Osamu heard his brother's report and relayed it through a cell phone to Saeko. Normal precautions against radio or cell interception were abandoned at the acting president's order. Doing so let the acting commander-in-chief micromanage the operation and potentially keep Sugawara from misguiding the Miya twins after his rescue.

In Ryu's office at Sakanoshita, Saeko's phone was on speaker. Ryu pondered what Terushima being arrested could mean; most likely Kageyama had discovered the leak. Would Kageyama unilaterally order Sugawara's execution in response? Through Saeko, he ordered the Miyas to continue to scan the building for any sign of Sugawara.

Terushima's supposed tip claimed Sugawara was in a storeroom on the third floor, but Osamu's recent surveillance with infrared goggles found no heat signatures indicative of a detainee on the mall's top level. Both he and Atsumu pulled out their respective goggles again. Though there were dozens of heat signatures—POWs—on the ground floor, Atsumu again saw nothing of note on the north or east sides of the mall. Osamu scanned the south and was scanning the west when a sight on the third floor caught his interest.

Two people, who hadn't been present previously, now occupied an apparent storeroom. One was kneeling, the other standing behind him. Osamu zoomed in. Suddenly the kneeling person throttled facedown. The upright individual held a colder heat signature evident of a pistol, which had just been used to kill the other person in the room.

Osamu gulped.

"General," he spoke into the phone warily, "an individual believed to be Sugawara was just executed."

A shockwave rolled across Ryu's chamber.

"Are you sure?" pressed Saeko. Osamu detailed his observations. The Tanaka siblings grimaced. Ryu rubbed his eyelids in exasperation. He never wanted Sugawara to _die_.

He pushed himself upright before issuing his next order.

Kageyama and every one of his cronies would pay for this.

"Launch the attack," Ryu told his sister. "Kill every traitor inside."

* * *

Yahaba arrived impatiently before Communications Minister Yuji Terushima who appeared indignant at being gripped so tightly by the guard who'd detained him. The lieutenant ordered the soldier to release the politician pending determination of the reason for his suspicious behavior.

"What are you doing here?" the commander began, wanting to waste no more time than necessary before returning to Iwaizumi. First the lieutenant-general, and now the communications minister had shown up. Something was going on, and Yahaba hoped the bureaucrat would shed some light.

"I, you know, just came to, uh…," Yuji trailed off, not having preplanned an alibi. Noticing the irate lieutenant, Terushima straightened his posture and spoke directly: "Gen. Sugawara is here, right?"

"What are on earth are you talking about?" griped Yahaba, flashing his teeth.

Terushima winced. Was Sugawara _not_ here?

Then a pop unmistakably of a rifle resounded outside the front entrance. Then another, this time at the mall's rear.

"Lieutenant!" called a panicked officer. "We are under sniper atta—" The radio died momentarily after additional rifle shots.

"Battle stations!" Yahaba wailed, the atrium carrying his echo through the whole mall. The prisoners slid into a huddle to avoid the expectant firefight. Guards took up cover behind plant fixtures and tables, focused on the front entrance. Yahaba drew his standard-issue pistol and hid behind the escalator. Terushima dashed madly away. Yahaba's adjutant alerted the commander, but Shigeru said to ignore the useless man.

Why of all places was the mall under attack? And how had nobody alerted Yahaba to a resumption of hostilities? One person definitely knew the answer, and that man was on the third floor.

Machinegun bullets shredded the glass façade of the main entrance. In their wake flew smoke grenades. As the battle began, Shigeru sprinted away without explanation. He bounded up the escalator's steps two at a time. If there was even a chance of salvaging the situation, he had to make Iwaizumi spill the beans.

Behind the food court, Terushima sprinted for his life, ignored by soldiers rushing to the front. Yuji could see the south exit and made haste towards it.

Then, just like at the front, the glass doors shattered under automatic gunfire. Yuji tripped onto his belly, covering his head as bullets overpassed him. He scrambled to his feet and ran up the nearest deactivated escalator. One of Osamu's men entering the building spotted the fugitive and took aim.

"Ignore him!" Osamu dictated. "We'll deal with him once we find Sugawara."

* * *

Yahaba stampeded madly to the top floor, then into the service halls. Iwaizumi had shut the door to the room in which Yahaba had left him. The lieutenant rammed inside.

He balked. Facedown on the ground was the prisoner, dead sure enough from a bullet to the back of the head. Iwaizumi, not expecting to be chanced upon so quickly, was caught tucking in his shirt. His officer's cap was lopsided atop the deceased person's skull, and Iwaizumi now wore a standard-issue albeit oversized helmet. His uniform questionably bespoke the rank of a private, while the dead man was wearing Iwaizumi's rank.

"Time for some explaining," Yahaba gnashed, aiming his pistol at his superior. Iwaizumi acted unfazed.

"This is part of a high-level infiltration—" he nonchalantly fibbed.

"Cut the BS!" Yahaba screeched.

Hajime frowned. In Shigeru's crosshairs, there was no time to draw his gun to fight back, and there was no taming the insolent officer either.

Within the hall, disconcerting the jumpy lieutenant, pattering footsteps sounded. Forgetting Iwaizumi, Yahaba advanced into the room and spun his handgun to the threshold. Seeking as good a place as any to hide, Terushima burst through the doorway, skidding to a stop upon the dreadful sight of Oikawa's right-hand man. Yahaba hesitated before realizing the communications minister wasn't a threat. He rapidly spun his gun back towards Hajime.

It was too late. Iwaizumi shot Yahaba squarely in the forehead. The lieutenant sprawled unceremoniously on the floor. Then he turned the gun on Terushima.

"Move sideways now," Iwaizumi grunted. Yuji sidled aside obediently. Hajime didn't know why Terushima was here but figured he'd take advantage of his appearance while he could. He arranged the deceased POW's arm by the skull. "Terushima, when I say 'run,' you are going to _run_ through the door and immediately turn _right_. Do anything else, and I will kill you." He glared sternly to ensure comprehension. Terushima nodded apprehensively. Iwaizumi holstered his weapon, drew a hand grenade, and looped one finger through the pin.

"Run."

He pulled the pin and rapidly placed the explosive in the prisoner's hand. Yuji hesitated nonetheless before scrambling out of the room. He swung as directed to the right. Iwaizumi evacuated and quickly tackled Terushima in the corridor. The grenade rocked the storage hallway as smoke briefly sputtered through the doorway. Iwaizumi drew his gun and pinned his new prisoner to the wall.

"What's the situation?"

"Where's Sugawara?!" Terushima piped impudently. Sensing time was limited, Iwaizumi donned a face mask and marched Terushima through the service corridor.

By the time they emerged in the main traffic area of the mall, the Miya Company could be heard on the top floor.

"Over here!" Iwaizumi yelled in the direction of activity. Several soldiers, followed by the two company captains, appeared. Iwaizumi kicked Terushima in the knee to force him to kneel and stuck his pistol to the back of his head.

"Sugawara's room was down this hall," Osamu pointed, directing a trio of soldiers into the service corridor. Atsumu, meanwhile, analyzed Iwaizumi, who stood a fair distance away, holding Terushima hostage. The brothers didn't know where this person had come from but recognized the uniform as matching that of the POWs downstairs.

"I killed the commander," Iwaizumi announced to both captains' shock. "Another man blew himself up in one of the rooms." Terushima gaped, unsure himself what was true and what wasn't anymore. A minute later, a soldier returned to report the dead Lt. Yahaba and another individual with the identification documents of Hajime Iwaizumi.

"Where's Sugawara?" Osamu asked the soldier.

"We're still searching, but there's no one else back there as of yet."

"Impossible. I saw someone get shot," Osamu insisted.

"Cool it, Samu," his twin brother tempered. "You," Atsumu said to Iwaizumi, "who else was up here?"

Hajime might have been able to get away with impersonating the POW he'd killed, but the Miya seemed aware of his execution.

"He has to be up here!" Terushima yelled spontaneously, wriggling in Hajime's grip. Iwaizumi tugged the man's hair. "Ow! Ow! Ow!"

"They brought another prisoner up here," Iwaizumi declared. "I don't know what they did with him."

"Was Sugawara here?" Osamu asked.

"No," Hajime replied. He continued with feigned shock: "Has he been captured?"

His satisfactory acting gave the Miyas pause, much to Iwaizumi's delight. The brothers looked at each other. Osamu swore. The man he'd seen get shot wasn't Sugawara but one of the prisoners. Most likely the culprits were the lieutenant and his superior, both of whom were thankfully dead. But Sugawara wasn't here. They had been lied to, a lie with ginormous consequences.

But the liar was now in their custody.

"You captured the fugitive. Good," Atsumu congratulated while Osamu dialed Saeko reluctantly.

"We've cleared the building," Osamu reported after his commander picked up. "We have Terushima, but Sugawara isn't here."

"He is!" Terushima again shrieked.

"Terushima insists he is, but there's no evidence of it. We have him in custody."

Iwaizumi swayed nervously.

Under no circumstances could he let Terushima out of his sight. The man had to die here and now. Somehow.

At Sakanoshita, Ryu kicked his desk and let out a ferocious roar, audible on Saeko's speakerphone:

"That filthy, little liar!" Ryu slammed his fists again and again on the desk.

"Let's get him back here to interrogate him," Saeko advanced.

"Screw that!" Ryu bellowed. "I'm done with that filthy, lying rat! Shoot him!"

Saeko frowned, but she couldn't disagree with the decision in principle.

Back at the mall, behind the face mask that worked quite well to further conceal his identity, Iwaizumi grinned sinisterly.

"With pleasure," he wanted to reply as he readied to blow Terushima's brains out.

* * *

 **And... scene!**

 **I actually miscounted in my chapter forecast last time. With this, there are four chapters left at minimum.**

 **Remember to check my profile page for updates on the next chapter.**

 **Also, if you want to see how the official manga release in English looks, check out my tumblr, stylinbreeze60. I've got several shots of pages from after the anime ends and will also take requests if there's a particular scene you'd like to see. Send me an ask or message.**

 **See you in chapter 24!**


	24. Risen Sun

This was it. The end.

As Iwaizumi's gun was jabbed into the back of his head, Yuji Terushima realized how foolish he'd been: betraying the administration in the first place, trusting Oikawa, running away from the presidential estate, standing by while Iwaizumi faked his own death.

Was he simply _destined_ to die like this?

Iwaizumi maintained his poker face though much relieved he had the carte blanche to shoot Terushima. That was one issue down, which would just leave the matter of eluding the Miya twins. Terushima scrunched his eyes shut, awaiting everything to be over.

And then, in some miraculous turn, a new unfamiliar voice shrilly ejected from the cell phone in Osamu Miya's hand.

"Cancel that order at once!"

Osamu and Atsumu quizzically gazed at the device that spewed forth the male speaker. Iwaizumi, his finger already halfway depressing the trigger, held up. Saeko didn't make a sound as the phone was swiped from her and brought to the meddler's mouth.

"Sgt. Miya—either of you," the man corrected, "what is Terushima's condition?" The co-commanders peered at the prisoner at the gunpoint of the renegade soldier.

"He's alive. We haven't done anything to him yet," Atsumu answered.

"Bring him back to Sakanoshita unharmed immediately!" the man barked. "Failure, and I will hold both of you responsible!"

"Lieutenant-General," Osamu called trying to address Saeko, "are those your orders?" However dogmatic he acted, not just any random person had the authority to override chain of command. Instead the man responded:

"I am the Acting Commander of the 1st Army and Lt.-Gen. Tanaka's _superior_ ," he roared, " _General_ Hisashi Kinoshita! Now, are your orders clear?"

Slightly befuddled by the situation, the sergeants took a moment before affirming. Kinoshita brusquely concluded the conversation and hung up, reminding them to make their way promptly to the base of operations.

Left in the silence of the third floor of the mall, the two officers stared at Terushima and the soldier detaining him. Yuji was quivering noticeably, since the miraculous intervention didn't change who his captor was. Even so, Hajime relaxed his finger from the trigger. Yuji was safe…for now.

"You," called Osamu, "bring him over. We'll take custody of him. Then, come. We're going to Sakanoshita." Iwaizumi tried to concoct a solution quickly. To let anyone else get hold of Yuji would be his own downfall at the very least, if not Oikawa's.

But before he'd barely begun thinking, a frantic soldier appeared.

"Sergeants, we're surrounded!" the man shouted in a panic.

* * *

"Excuse me!" an indignant Saeko erupted as Kinoshita nonchalantly returned her cell phone.

"My threat about Terushima's wellbeing applies to you as well," Hisashi scolded, ignoring the woman's affront. Standing flabbergasted behind the desk on the opposite side of the room, Ryu snarled.

"Kinoshita! What are you doing here?! I thought you were dealing with Kunimi!"

"He's been dealt with," the general calmly replied. "I also made contact with Shiratorizawa's mayor, Eita Semi. He assured me of the town's fidelity to Hinata. As for why I'm here, Suga reached out prior to his unfortunate capture and designated me to run in his stead."

"And why wasn't that public knowledge?" Saeko spat. She knew full well why Suga would have kept that a secret, only registering the complaint in order to undermine Kinoshita's command "coup."

"Even if you doubt me, my appointment has been approved by the Chief of Staff," Kinoshita continued before pointedly looking at Ryu. The younger Tanaka furrowed his brow, obviously skeptical that Ukai would have signed off on Kinoshita's ascendancy. Staring right at the acting president, Kinoshita accentuated his next statement: "It was at the order of the commander-in-chief."

Now Ryunosuke Tanaka's eyes bulged. Before he could conjure the words to reply at the insinuation Hinata had been—secretly—found, Kiyoko processed into the room and stopped beside the general.

"Hinata _is_ alive," she calmly corroborated. Saeko had started thumbing through her phone, instantly discovering the internet aflame with joy at the announcement of the president's survival. The word had come from the social media account Kiyoko had been managing for the coup, despite the woman's sequestering without a cell phone.

"She's right," Saeko reluctantly conceded aloud.

"Who publicized that?!" raged Ryu. Kiyoko blushed. Only one person could have, she thought: Yui, instructed to do so by Narita at Sugawara's own direction.

Ryu thudded in his chair in exaggerated defeat, plopping his forehead against cusped hands. Hinata's survival wasn't terrible news; he never actually wished Shoyo dead. The all-encompassing purge he'd sought was merely out of reach though. It did not mean that his position was in jeopardy necessarily, although if Hinata wished to reassert his executive office, he might have ill feelings towards Tanaka's handling of his time in power. For the meantime, he and Saeko would go about sweeping some of the nastiness under the rug.

"All right then," he said. "So where's the prez now?"

"Good question," replied Kinoshita. He and Kiyoko stepped aside, unveiling the doorway. Two more figures now whooshed into the room and took up positions either side of the door like an entourage. One was instantly recognized as Gen. Narita. The other man, with the rank of lieutenant-general, a certain Sou Inuoka, was unfamiliar to Tanaka. The person who appeared in their wake sent a chill down Ryu's spine:

Hinata.

Moreover, the president did not appear pleased, bearing an uncharacteristically severe countenance. Shoyo marched sternly towards Ryu and stopped in front of the seated man who was as wide-eyed and motionless as a rabbit.

"You're in my seat," Hinata gnashed. Ryu shot out of the chair like a rocket and offered it subserviently to the premier.

"I-I was just k-keeping it warm for you, Mr. President," he chattered. Hinata thumped in the red leather chair and spun around, glare unchanged. Tanaka stepped back nervously. "Everyone told me what you did," the president muttered simply. Ryu gulped. He continued to trudge backward until he hit the wall on the opposite side of the room from the door. "You said I shouldn't have been so trusting of people," Hinata grumbled, "—well, maybe I shouldn't have trusted _you_!" He suddenly shot to his feet but controlled himself. Ryu squirmed as Hinata sat back down.

Saeko gawked at the exchange, forgetting the presence of her acting superior.

"Gen. Tanaka," Kinoshita said to the lieutenant-general, "there are some questions about the conduct of proceedings of the last few hours. Until those questions are resolved, you are temporarily relieved of command. You are not to leave the premises without my permission."

Saeko huffed at the directive, not coincidentally identical to the same restriction Ukai placed on Sugawara. With no other reason to stay in the space, she stormed out of the room with her head bowed, breezing past Yachi and Hana spying on the whole exchange from the hallway.

"Gen. Narita, I'd like to recommend Inuoka to take acting command of the 4th Division," Kinoshita said.

"What do you say?" Narita offered.

"It'd be my pleasure," answered Sou. Shoyo smiled in the direction of his friend.

Then his eyes turned back on Ryu accusatively. Without his sister, Ryu felt like he'd been abandoned to the wolves under Hinata's ghostly glare.

"Why are you still here?" Shoyo hauntingly said. Ryu grimaced and also began to march away in silence.

Then, in a fashion almost comical, Ryu's cell phone rang. Sitting on the desk in plain sight, it blasted a rock n' roll ringtone that made Tanaka freeze. Like a teacher glancing at a confiscated phone, Shoyo took a nosy peek at the caller ID. His eyes twitched in curiosity.

"Answer it," he commanded. Surprised and somewhat confused, Ryu took the phone and flinched when he saw the caller's name himself:

Toru Oikawa.

With a gulp and a deep breath, he answered.

"Yo! 'Bout time you called!" he zealously postured.

"I was busy, you nincompoop," came Toru's peeved vocals. The cool and casual deputy prime minister never got along with the brash Ryu. "Is Hinata there?"

"He wants to talk to you," Ryu, almost looking miffed, said with a glance. Shoyo nodded an affirmative. "Yeah, here he is," Ryu finished before handing over the device. Hinata brought it to his ear, his face mixed with caution and uncertainty.

"Oikawa?"

"Mr. President, thank goodness!" came the spritely reply.

"Don't joke around. We know you're working with them." Shoyo's bluntness actually surprised the room's other occupants.

"About that!" Toru exclaimed. "Yes, you caught me. But hear me out! Things have changed, you see? Tobio was the real crook. He strung me along. But believe me, if you will: I've had a change of heart! You see, Tobio's men are now on my side, and we've, shall I say, deposed him."

That made Hinata's heart skip. Never mind the rumors about Kageyama—with which he was acquainted during the flight to Yukigaoka City—Oikawa, the hardest negotiator in the cabinet, now claimed to have taken charge of the rebellion. Then, as pretty much predicted, came the catch:

"So there you have it! We'll give you Tobio in exchange for a blanket amnesty for everyone else."

"How 'bout you all give up now and we work out the specifics later?" Hinata haggled.

"Well, I'm afraid it's not that easy," Toru coyly, though not unexpectedly, rebuffed. "You see, _I_ know the kind of person you are, but these soldiers—well, they don't trust you, or your allies. It seems Ryu was a little too rough on some of their comrades—so the rumors are—and they're understandably a bit miffed and suspicious about it. I can only do so much as their representative right now, so I'm afraid we _both_ have to play by their rules."

"And why shouldn't we just continue the fighting then?" Hinata challenged. That was the last thing on his mind right now, but he futilely hoped it'd sway the slick man on the other end.

"Because there's a ceasefire in place which Ryu agreed to under threat of Suga being killed. However, Ryu broke that ceasefire, and the Miyas killed a very popular lieutenant as well. Some guy named Yahaba. Anyway, some of the soldiers not under my control have captured the twins and may very well execute them in revenge if they see fit. I also can't make any promises about Suga. His guards aren't under my control either. He may already be dead."

Hinata was fit to be tied. Just like in the cabinet, Toru Oikawa had the upper hand even under these extreme circumstances, and there was nothing that could be done about it.

But as crucial as the lives of everyone were important, the person of highest concern to Hinata right now was in fact the one nobody else cared about: Kageyama.

Kageyama: everyone told Shoyo that interrogations revealed Tobio was the leader of the insurrection; that the information came from someone as unreliable as Bokuto was not common knowledge though. Every person around him—even Narita and Kinoshita and a reluctant Kiyoko—asserted his former political rival was a traitor.

"How's Kageyama?" Shoyo asked.

"He was wounded during the overthrow," replied Toru. The suggestion he was injured made Shoyo shiver. "However, if it means anything to you, he keeps saying he wants to talk to you. Don't know why, but he does. I can't give him over to your forces without an agreement since from the standpoint of my men he's a bargaining chip, but if you have any concerns about his welfare or want to hear what he has to say, I think I could arrange you to safely visit him on our territory."

Shoyo perked up at the suggestion. Why would Kageyama want to talk to him? Was Oikawa just spinning a web? It didn't matter. This could be the break he'd been hoping for:

A chance to disprove—or _prove_ —Kageyama's guilt.

* * *

After continuing the conversation over other details related to the state of affairs, Oikawa and Hinata's discussion finally ended. Once he hung up the phone, Toru faced the other two people in the back of a halftrack with him.

The halftrack and a few others like it came from the presidential estate and had been used to transport Kageyama, Oikawa, and Kindaichi—as well as a convoy of soldiers—promptly to Shinzen Mall. They'd arrived in the aftermath of the Miya Company's operation. With the full contingent of troops far outnumbering the mall's defenders, the small elite force surrendered quickly.

By luck, doing so had not only reunited the coup leader with his most trusted confidante Iwaizumi but also fortuitously brought Terushima back under his supervision. Kageyama and Terushima were sequestered in different vehicles to keep their nosy ears away from Oikawa's negotiations, the conversation having been observed by only Yutaro Kindaichi and the disguised Hajime Iwaizumi. Chafing at the heat inside the vehicle, Hajime wriggled off the face shield but kept the slightly oversized helmet.

"All right! Now we wait for Shrimpy to come to his senses!" Toru exclaimed to his comrades.

"You think he'll take the bait?" asked Iwaizumi.

"Of course he will," Oikawa objected. "He'll want to know so badly why Tobio betrayed him, and he'll be hoping Tobio says something to implicate me, so I'm sure he's jumping at the chance to see him. And take off that stupid helmet! You look like an idiot!"

Iwaizumi ripped off the head protection and purposefully threw it just shy of hitting Oikawa.

"Hey! Watch where you're throwing that!"

"Try making a plan that works for once," Hajime grumbled.

"Terushima going AWOL is _not_ my fault, nor is you being too _slow_!"

"What are you going to do with Terushima?" Kindaichi interrupted.

"Kill him," interjected Hajime. "What else?"

"For a dead guy, you're sure talkative," complained Toru. "And you're wrong! _We_ won't kill him. _They_ will." Oikawa pointed obscurely at the side of the halftrack to indicate their allied troops as a whole. Kindaichi gulped. "Also, Yutaro, as far as anyone is concerned, as of right now Suga is dead. There was nothing we could do to save him. Make that happen, discreetly."

Toru's gaze narrowed at the 5th Division commander, officially his only surviving high-ranking subordinate. Yutaro wavered but eventually nodded and left the vehicle.

"Now what?" Iwaizumi asked.

"We take Tobio to the place where he's going to die," Toru said with a grin.

* * *

In the span of two hours, Kageyama was handcuffed to a hospital bed at Ubugawa Hospital in the eastern portion of the city. With a swelling black eye and a (nonexistent) wound to the chest, he was under constant watch by the incognito Iwaizumi. Kindaichi directed the military side of the coup—tabulating POW numbers and fielding complaints from impatient regiment commanders—without Oikawa's oversight, the latter man too busy setting the stage for what was to come next.

Things were foolproof. The hospital was under the control of the 44th Regiment and its dissident commander Suguru Daisho, although Oikawa hadn't seen the serpentine lieutenant in some time. Terushima was under guard in an inner room of the hospital; Toru had decided he would "commit suicide" before nightfall. The Miya Company was detained at another location at Kindaichi's direction, well away from the area. Toru rigged Kageyama's room with audio and video surveillance. It was purportedly meant to ensure there was evidence of whatever would be said and done in the room for the protection of the president. However, Daisho would be monitoring the recordings and would suppress anything unflattering if the need arise.

When Toru asked Yutaro for an update on Sugawara, the lieutenant-general was grumpily silent. Kindaichi was too soft, Toru thought. But Sugawara's demise was one less headache, and if social media was any indication, the People's General's execution hadn't yet leaked to the enemy as Toru planned. All that remained, as he gazed out an upper-floor hospital window at the sun starting to fall in the sky, was for Hinata to agree to the rendezvous.

At last, his phone rang.

"Mr. President?" Oikawa cordially answered.

"You get the amnesty, _with_ some exceptions, but we'll work out those details only after I see him."

"After you see who?"

"You said I could see Kageyama…."

Toru beamed sinisterly.

* * *

 **I ended up combining the 4th- and 3rd-to-last chapters to make the above, so now there are definitively only two chapters left. Just to hear me say that after so long blows my mind. Don't forget to leave your comments!**

 **Don't forget to check my profile page for updates on when the next chapter will be released. Also follow me on tumblr at stylinbreeze60 for notifications on the new chapter as well and notifications of other fics, including the work I start after this. More details on my next project to come. See you in chapter 25!**


	25. The Truth

**At last, the climax of our story. Don't forget there's one more chapter to come after this. I'll reveal my future creative plans after the final chapter, which, like this chapter, you do not want to miss! Follow stylinbreeze60 on tumblr for news on those creative plans and for other fic updates as well.**

 **Special shoutout to abeya on tumblr for making the cover image you now see on this fic. Check her out; she's doing commissions.**

 **And now the moment we've all been waiting for.**

* * *

Oikawa waited in the lobby of the General Hospital in the Yukigaoka City suburb of Ubugawa while the view outside tinted yellow in the sunset. A convoy with a motorcade was bringing the nation's president shortly. Soon, the lead vehicles of the military convoy rolled through the ER driveway until a stately black sedan came to a rest in front of the entrance. Members of the Presidential Guard emerged and opened the rear passenger door. Oikawa stepped out to greet the arriving dignitary.

"Mr. President," Toru welcomed, extending a hand.

"Thank you, Oikawa," bowed Hinata graciously as they shook hands.

The pair proceeded into the lobby where Lt.-Gen. Yutaro Kindaichi waited primly. Hinata chose not to make eye contact, his focus fixed on the double doors in the back of the room leading into the hospital itself. Oikawa said it was the demand of the rebels that none of the president's personal bodyguards join him inside the building.

As the president and deputy prime minister flowed past Kindaichi, the lieutenant-general and two soldiers silently joined behind. Hinata sensed the escort but glanced only at Oikawa who appeared calm.

Then the group proceeded to the third floor where Kindaichi signaled the soldiers to hold back by the elevator. There were no other soldiers in sight, Hinata noted. The trio then stopped at a room on the west side of the building. Shoyo and Oikawa stood either side of the sliding entryway with Kindaichi positioned between them and back, making a triangle.

"Kageyama is in here," Oikawa said. "We have video and audio set up at your request. Kindaichi is one of my trusted comrades, and he and I will stop anyone from trying to breach the room from out here. There is a guard in the room, but he has Kindaichi's seal of approval."

Hinata was sternly confident. Beyond this door, he hoped, was the truth.

After Hinata entered, Oikawa closed the door softly behind the president, and Kindaichi gave the deputy prime minister a stabbing look. Toru ignored it. Yutaro had made his choice a long time ago, and even if he were to fight back now, he'd have to face all of Lt. Daisho's squad singlehandedly. If he remained an obedient dog, Oikawa would make it worth his while, a fact Kindaichi knew.

As for Hinata, Toru didn't plan to kill him in Kageyama's room. If the meeting proceeded as expected, it would end without fanfare. Afterward, Toru would offer Hinata a drink laced with a chemical from the hospital's lab. The strongest opposition to an Oikawa premiership after that would probably come from Tanaka, but that man had already flushed his credibility down the toilet. The subsequent inquest into Hinata's death would pin the blame squarely (and exclusively) on Lt. Daisho, the commander of the forces guarding the hospital. The man would be unable to avoid execution, but Toru shed no tears for the officer notorious for playing fast and loose with military regulations. Despite his fidelity, there was no way to save Bokuto at this point either. If Yamamoto was still alive, he was doomed to the gallows as well.

Alongside Kageyama as the case may be.

That was assuming this meeting between Kageyama and Hinata went according to plan, and there remained the possibility it wouldn't. If the conversation went especially awry, the guard inside the room—Iwaizumi—stood by as insurance with a simple directive: make it look like a murder-suicide.

* * *

After Oikawa shut the door, Hinata took in the atmosphere of the space. The Venetian blinds on the room-length window were closed, masking a yellow aura that gave the white space a warm shade. The guard Oikawa mentioned, with an oversized helmet and surgical mask, was staunchly posed against the side wall, equidistant between the foot of Kageyama's bed and the entrance.

Tobio slouched in the singular hospital bunk that was flush with the window. Tobio sat upright, his lower half covered by white sheets, his torso in a bluish hospital gown. A gauze bandage covered his left eye, and his right arm—the one closest to Hinata—was handcuffed to the bedpost. Tobio snuck an emotionless glance at Hinata and then resumed what he seemed to have been doing before: sulking.

Oikawa warned him Hinata was coming. Toru went on about how nothing Kageyama said would change the outcome. Iwaizumi's presence—Tobio made eye contact with the man once and instantly recognized him—was proof of Toru's threat enough. However, Kageyama had no defense for himself anyway.

Shoyo's first act was to march to the plastic blinds, twisting the rod until the slats were horizontal and allowing the blinding sunlight above the townscape to blast in, hurting Kageyama's eyes. Hinata then yanked the lift cord to raise the blinds fully. Tobio could see the apartment structure that sat over a thousand feet beyond the hospital plaza.

Then Shoyo paced to Kageyama's side. His face was one of grave vexation, and the uncharacteristic look of, dare he say, righteous anger made Kageyama pay more attention.

"I just need you to say it," Hinata began firmly. "Oikawa is the one behind this." Kageyama jolted at the accusation but was not so surprised. Shoyo was capable of being intelligent if given the chance, a fact Tobio was well aware of from their many private conversations. "This conversation is being recorded, so speak the truth," Shoyo concluded.

That the conversation was being recorded was one of the reasons Kageyama _couldn't_ speak the truth though. After the way he had been demonized and amidst the lack of faith from his comrades, anything he'd say would sound like a lie. He had no defense for siding with Oikawa, for spending hours at Toru's estate while his fellow cabinet members were dying, for standing by while the deputy prime minister whipped so many into shape. Never mind Toru would never let any statement incriminating himself go public.

And that wasn't the only issue. Tobio snuck a glance at Iwaizumi who was hauntingly glaring back.

"I can't," Tobio whispered. The barely audible voice made Hajime, and he took a step closer to further remind Kageyama to watch what he says.

"Why did you take Oikawa's side?" Shoyo rephrased, just as stern.

Stoic in the flesh, Tobio's blood boiled inside. "You idiot," he wanted to mutter. If Shoyo suspected Oikawa, why on earth did he walk into the man's clutches? As long as he was here, Shoyo was in grave danger.

"Hinata," Tobio remorsefully mumbled, "you just need to go."

"Tell me!" Shoyo yelled.

"Tell you what?!" Kageyama yelled back. He was angry with the foolishness Shoyo displayed in coming here, but he also hoped exploding on the premier would frighten him into leaving. "You think you came here to get me to clear my name?!"

"Yes," Shoyo said, suddenly calm again. The change in tone struck Kageyama silent. "Do you remember when I chose you as prime minister? Asahi didn't trust you. Neither did Tanaka. But you remember who vouched for you?"

Sawamura, Kageyama recalled. His idealistic eloquence and confident way with words appeased many a quibbler during the formation of Hinata's cabinet. During a private hearing with Hinata's closest confidantes at which Tobio was in attendance, Asahi openly insinuated Kageyama was out to steal the office from Hinata. But Sawamura held firm: "No. At best, he'll stop the office from being stolen."

What a prediction. And what a terrible duty to live up to, Kageyama dreaded the moment he heard the statement.

What would Tobio do if he succeeded Hinata as president? Honestly, he wasn't sure himself. He only knew one thing for sure:

Finish what Hinata started.

Nothing else in this country was worthwhile.

"Sawamura stood up for you," Hinata continued after the lull in conversation. "But like back then, nobody trusts you."

Kageyama sighed. Either forgetting or ignoring the audio in the room, he decided to speak unfiltered. They were both as good as dead, their respective necks in nooses tied to Oikawa's finger. Despite the obvious and horrifying prognosis, Hinata stood his ground without fear. And that made Tobio at least want to satisfy Shoyo if nobody else.

"You really think anyone would accept me if I say I'm innocent?" he complained.

"No," answered Hinata. "The people will believe _me_ though. Oikawa conned you into this, didn't he?"

"I thought I could do something to undermine him," Tobio gulped. "But the rest of the government won't accept that."

"No, they won't believe you if you say that," Hinata stated as he unlocked his cell phone and fiddled with an app. "They won't believe me either," he added with a tint of annoyance. Kageyama quizzically watched the premier as he set the phone face up on a tray for medical instruments beside the bed. "But like before, they'll believe Sawamura."

Hinata tapped a voice message that broadcast in the room, captivating both Kageyama and Iwaizumi as Daichi Sawamura's huffing voice expounded:

"Oikawa's behind the coup! They've killed Asahi. They're going to frame Kageyama. They've captured HQ, and the cabinet. Yukigaoka has fallen. Please—"

A dull sound heralded Daichi groaning before a final, pained sendoff: "Please, save Haikyu."

During a brief moment of data signal in the caverns of the city of Tokonami, Hinata had gotten messages out to a few people. After he emerged in Wakunan, he had enough signal to receive a reply sent by Sawamura. He'd kept it a secret, both fearing the reality of what Daichi said and fearing without any other proof that nobody would believe Kageyama was being made a scapegoat. All of his subsequent instructions to Sugawara were intended not to tie Tobio publicly to the coup. Tanaka ruined that—but not irreparably, Shoyo insisted to himself. If anyone had known about the message before he came to this meeting, they'd stop him from coming, and so he kept it a secret even now. He had to ensure Tobio's name was cleared before taking Oikawa down.

Tobio gawked, hearing Sawamura not only exonerate him but implicate Oikawa.

Then he remembered the other person in the room.

Iwaizumi was dumbfounded. He had completely forgotten about the voice message Sawamura sent right before he murdered the man. That message was based on the hints he dropped to Sawamura. Daisho, monitoring the audio in the room, most likely heard the recording.

If just to save himself, Hajime had to clean this up right now.

"Hinata!" yelled Kageyama as Iwaizumi rapidly aimed his sidearm at the president.

A single gunshot rang out. Oikawa and Kindaichi flinched, the latter then gulping. Oikawa threw open the door with barely restrained glee.

Shoyo Hinata, standing upright and perfectly well, gazed wide-eyed at Toru now standing in the threshold. Tobio gaped with a mix of fear and confusion. Perplexed, Oikawa peered towards Iwaizumi, who was on the ground, shivering from a gunshot wound to the neck. Neither Hinata nor Kageyama were armed. Oikawa traced a theoretical projectile trajectory to the window and spotted a bullet-sized hole in the glass.

"Yutaro!" Oikawa shoved Kindaichi aside, quickly produced his own pistol, and fired at the corner of the blinds. As he did so, another rifle blast came through the glass and missed Oikawa by a hair. Toru's bullet snapped the reel of the blinds, and the raised window covering rattled all the way closed, obscuring all vision from the outside world. Oikawa quickly closed the door behind him, his gun predatorily marking an unsettled Hinata.

"I don't know how you pulled that off, but this is it, Shrimpy." Iwaizumi, his head exposed by his helmet having rolled off when he fell, heaved deeply as he watched the unfolding scene. Hinata stared coldly back, totally unfazed. Oikawa found the man's repugnance almost adorable.

Then Oikawa heard a pistol cock beside him as Kindaichi aimed his personal weapon at Toru's head.

"I'd suggest you be careful where you're pointing that, Yutaro," puffed Oikawa.

"It's over," the lieutenant-general simply said. Oikawa refrained from laughing. Daisho could see everything taking place on video. Even sooner than expected, two soldiers with assault rifles opened the door to the space.

"Shoot Yutaro!" Oikawa screamed, hopping away melodramatically, hoping to take advantage of the confusion.

But there was no gunfire. Oikawa rapidly realized the interlopers' aim was on him.

"It's no use," Kindaichi continued dryly. "Every soldier guarding this hospital is from the Miya Company."

Oikawa twitched in shock. All the soldiers they'd captured at Shinzen were supposed to have been transferred somewhere else, a task Kindaichi was put in charge of.

"Where's Daisho?" gnashed Toru.

"You left me in charge of troop deployments, so I sent him and his entire regiment to the front."

Oikawa scowled angrily. "Oh, yeah?" he replied skeptically. "You expect me to believe you arranged this whole setup yourself without my noticing?"

Then came another blithe voice from the hallway.

"You're right. He didn't," the ashen-haired speaker said as he peered around the corner with a gleeful grin. "I did," finished Koshi Sugawara.

Toru recalled telling Kindaichi to execute Sugawara, and instantly he realized where he'd screwed up. He snarled at his traitorous subordinate.

"Oh, I think I should mention," Sugawara chimed, "I took the liberty of talking to Terushima. He told me everything," he grinned mischievously.

"I can't believe you," Toru growled at Kindaichi.

"Don't give us all the credit," Sugawara said with folded arms. "The whole thing was the president's idea."

Oikawa spun in shock to the deviously beaming Hinata. Shortly after Hinata's first phone call with Oikawa ended, Kindaichi—instead of ordering Sugawara's execution—reached out to the only person he could think of: Aone. Having been released by Hinata's command, Takanobu routed Yutaro to the premier. Since sneaking troops behind enemy lines unfeasible, the plan to use Oikawa's own prisoners developed. Once everything was in place, Hinata agreed to the rendezvous for the purpose of getting Kageyama to indict Oikawa and—in theory—set up an arrest, the Miya twins stationed as snipers to take down Iwaizumi if needed.

"You," Oikawa gnashed at the president. "This is all _your_ fault!"

He pointed his handgun at the premier. The response was swift. A few short bursts of gunfire, and Toru Oikawa tumbled like a sack of bricks.

After a few moments, Kindaichi checked Oikawa's pulse and found none.

It was over.

"Thank you. For getting my footage," Hinata grinned at the prime minister. Kageyama smiled.

Forgotten by the relieved men in the room, the felled Iwaizumi gawped.

This was always bound to happen, he'd thought. His conscience told him Oikawa's plans were too grandiose to realistically succeed. And now the man who would protect him was dead. The man he'd given up everything for.

And it was all Shoyo Hinata's fault.

With everyone focused on the dead body of Toru Oikawa, Iwaizumi reclaimed his weapon and aimed at the president. Kageyama spotted him first.

"Hinata!"

Hajime let out two rounds before the room's occupants could shower his body with gunfire, pulverizing any life from him.

Shoyo hit the wall after the first gunshot in his side and vibrated from the second in his chest.

"Hinata!" Kageyama bellowed again, falling out of the bed trying to reach the president, twisting around the bedpost he was cuffed to.

"Hinata! Hinata!" he again panted as he stretched his unfettered arm to catch the president's falling body.

Shoyo could hear Kageyama's voice, and then Sugawara's, calling his name. The racket in the room became dreamlike as his eyelids closed.


	26. Inauguration

**At long last, here we are: the final chapter. So much happened since I originally drafted it, and yet except for expanding some scenes in light of story developments, it's almost exactly how I first envisioned it. I hope you all enjoy, and thank you so much for walking this journey with me. It makes me so happy.**

* * *

Six months after the "Haikyu Crisis" almost tore apart a nation, an elaborate ceremony convened in a furnished aircraft hangar on Gen. Chikara Ennoshita Air Base in Tokonami, the former Chidoriyama Airfield. Since the missiles scheduled for decommission were destroyed during Kitagawa's intervention in the crisis, a new pact between Kitagawa and Haikyu had to be carved out, one that to everyone's pleasure went much farther than the original.

It was the beginning of a new era of unity between the two countries.

Foreign Minister Kei Tsukishima stood among the guests of honor beside Minister of Communications Tadashi Yamaguchi. Kei took note of his friend's stance. Yamaguchi's recovery took longer than Kei's, but now his friend's anklebones had repaired, and the shorter man no longer exhibited a sway in his step. He appeared perfectly content as representatives of both nations applied their signatures on the treaty document. During the signing, Kei scanned the room filled with many other dignitaries and officials. He spotted the regional police commander, Hayato Ikejiri, among the civil servants. From the military, among others, he was surprised to recognize the commander of the 4th Division, Lt.-Gen. Saeko Tanaka.

After the signing, a moment of silence was held in memory of Ambassador Nakashima and all people of both countries who perished in the tragedy.

After the event, Kei loitered on the airbase taxiway gazing at a Kitagawan aircraft whose engines were starting to churn; as foreign minister, it was his job to see off the visiting premier who still dallied with pleasantries.

"Hard to believe we made it here," declared a voice behind Kei. Tsukishima at last beheld the aged and jovial president of Kitagawa, Yasufumi Nekomata, with his entourage.

"It was a pleasure," Kei said as he shook hands. President Nekomata unexpectedly tugged the foreign minister into a manly hug.

"Nakashima spoke very highly of you, I hope you know." The compliment made Tsukishima blush, and after the older man broke the embrace, Kei stoically wiped his glasses to bide time to recompose himself.

"It's a shame you cannot stay for tomorrow," Kei replied, affixing his new pair of spectacles to his face.

"Tomorrow is _your_ day," Nekomata answered. "You don't want an old geezer like me intruding." He chuckled before his aide nudged him to continue walking. "To many happy years," he waved and left the humbled foreign minister.

Kei smiled. Yes, tomorrow _was_ their day—the country's day, that is. It was the day long awaited since the events of six months ago:

The inauguration.

* * *

Kei rode in the back of a reinforced limousine to Tokonami's public airport to catch a flight back to Yukigaoka City. The passenger compartment of the vehicle held two rows of seats facing each other. Two others from the ceremony shared the vehicle with him: Yamaguchi, who sat beside Kei in the forward-facing row, and the new Captain of the Presidential Guard in the backward-facing row. It was unorthodox for the Presidential Guard's chief to be away from the leader, but an allowance was made here for sentimental reasons.

The car navigated the city bypass before veering off at the airport exit. Kei lazily peered out the window at the passing scenery, poignantly spotting the signage for Yuu Nishinoya International Airport.

"I was surprised to see Saeko," Yamaguchi suddenly said. Kei glanced at him.

"Did you talk to her?" he inquired numbly.

"No, but you did, right?" Yamaguchi said to the man sitting across from both of them. The Captain of the Presidential Guard, Akiteru Tsukishima, nodded.

Kei mentally replayed the story of his brother's survival as it had been relayed to him. Defying her instincts after saving Yamaguchi, Saeko checked the spot where Akiteru had been when the station's tower fell. To her shock, an unconscious Col. Tsukishima was cocooned by a pocket in the mangled metal frame. She extricated him and carried him to safety just before the roof exploded.

It was saving Yamaguchi and the elder Tsukishima that spared the woman a reprimand for her subsequent actions that day.

"Before the ceremony, yeah," Akiteru said in answer to Yamaguchi's question. "I said thank you on behalf of both of us." He paused before adding a second statement directed at the communications minister: "Also, again, let me thank _you_."

Yamaguchi jolted, recalling his embarrassing attempt to distract the helicopter that threatened to kill him and Akiteru.

"You don't have to thank me for that," he giggled nervously. Akiteru respected the man's bashful humility and relaxed into the seatback, arms stretched across the top of the seat, gazing at the zipping scenery.

"Well," he said, "looks like we made it through another one."

There was silence, the remark not needing a reply. Yamaguchi looked relieved while Kei formed an uncommon smile as he peered out the window again. Yes, indeed, somehow they'd all emerged from another national crisis, together.

* * *

By coincidence, that very evening the trial judgment of the masterminds of the coup was delivered. Bokuto and Yamamoto were sentenced to life in prison, Akaashi to 20 years, Kunimi to 15 years. A separate trial sentenced Yuji Terushima to 7 years in prison. Kindaichi and Aone pleaded guilty to charges but were immediately pardoned.

Kenma Kozume was not prosecuted. While his promise of amnesty was respected, he immediately retired from public life and simply vanished: nobody had seen him for six months.

Watching the news coverage of the judgment from his office at military headquarters was Chief of Staff of the Army Koshi Sugawara and his Deputy Chief of Staff, Gen. Sou Inuoka. When Sugawara saw Gen. Ukai for the first time after the coup's defeat, Keishin facetiously declared that he never "accepted" Suga's resignation and therefore it was void. Ukai then resigned of his own accord, and—much to his chagrin—popular acclaim forced Sugawara to command the military in his stead.

"Funny how it came the night before the inauguration," Sou voiced in regard to the timing of the judgment. Suga nodded. Sou glanced at this boss. "Are you ready for tomorrow?"

The answer was yes and no. None of them wanted to relive the events of six months ago, which tomorrow's ceremony would most certainly recall. The planning process alone evoked many images of Hinata and Asahi's inauguration a year ago, but those joyous memories were too easily replaced by memories of what had been lost.

Having testified in the trial himself, Sugawara didn't want to confront those pains again yet another time, especially not in a public forum. But, he knew he had a job to do. He breathed measuredly, donned a meek smile and his officer's cap, and prepared to step outside his office to review the preparations once more. Even if he wanted to avoid it, he would be at tomorrow's festivities.

After all, he had to maintain not only his reputation as "The People's General" but also as "The Liberator of Yukigaoka."

* * *

Yui Michimiya's car turned from the old Promenade onto Ministry Street, now signed Azumane Avenue and Sawamura Street, respectively. Concrete barriers manned by police guarded the roadway as the inauguration prepared to get underway in a few hours. IDs were checked in a VIP lane, which Yui qualified for by virtue of her special invite from Kiyoko.

As she passed the checkpoint, all around Yui saw camera operators from HBC and independent news outlets capturing every bit of B-roll they could. At the end of the cul-de-sac on the decorated balcony of the Presidential Estate, Kiyoko oversaw the finishing touches with Prime Minister Ittetsu Takeda. Yui eventually made her way to the balcony herself to see Shimizu.

By the time, she arrived Takeda had moved on to other matters and Hana was now conversing with the Minister of Youth and Culture. Beside Hana stood a brunette girl named Runa who was tending to Hana's two kids. As far as the older sibling—a boundlessly excitable toddler with the spitting image of Yuji Terushima—knew, Daddy was on a "seven-year world tour" because he was such a famous celebrity after being on TV during the crisis.

"Yui, you made it," Kiyoko greeted and hugged the girl. "Thank you for everything."

"It's no problem," Michimiya blushed. Kiyoko, multitasking as chief of protocol for the event, then proceeded to guide Yui, Hana, and Runa to their assigned seats in the audience.

Back at the intersection of Sawamura Street and Azumane Avenue, another car arrived at the checkpoint in the VIP lane. The guard checked the ID of the solemn driver and confirmed it against his list.

"Welcome, Mr. Kozume," the guard bowed. Kenma shyly took his ID, avoiding eye contact, but the guard suddenly leaned into the vehicle. "I was instructed to inform you to see the president prior to the ceremony."

Kenma jolted but nodded silently.

Unbeknownst to the nation's leader, that was exactly what he came to do.

* * *

On the second floor of the Presidential Estate, Kenma waddled on a cane down the main hall to the presidential foyer. His spine suffered permanent damage on the roof of HBC, leaving his right leg with an incorrigible limp. He'd made do, however, taking everything in stride with a shrug, as he'd always done.

As he approached the doors to the foyer, he spotted a man with a buzz cut standing akimbo, talking to two Presidential Guardsmen outside the entrance. The fellow's jaw dropped at the sight of Kenma.

Kenma immediately diverted his glance from his former boss, the man who'd unexpectedly become the second-in-command of the Presidential Guard, Ryunosuke Tanaka. Kenma's gesture forced Tanaka to do the same, creating an awkward sterility in the hall.

"What are you doing here?" Ryu coyly asked.

"I was told to see the president."

That got Ryu's attention, and he suspiciously pored over the retired police commander. Tanaka left the cabinet after the coup and ended up reenlisting in the Army. By virtue of his past military service, he quickly attained officer rank and ended up in the Presidential Guard. He never spoke about the awkward irony of his new post. In fact, in light of the undeserved mercy shown him and his sister, he now avowed full fidelity and an unfaltering zeal to protect the administration. Some people were also shocked that the notoriously inefficient interior minister carried himself far more professionally and productively as the deputy commander of the Presidential Guard.

"Oh yeah?" Ryu postured. "Well, they di'n't tell me, y'know?"

At that moment the foyer door parted slightly. Kenma was surprised to see standing in its wake the man of the hour, the man whose temporary position the last six months would today finally become official:

Tobio Kageyama.

"Kozume," Tobio said with a bit of surprise. "Tanaka, it's fine. Let him in."

Ryu backed off huffily, and Kenma waddled past. He came here to see the president but given the unexpected meeting with Tanaka, he decided to say something unprepared.

"Thank you," he mumbled without eye contact. Kenma was in and out of unconscious for two days after being shot, but he would not have made it at all if not for Ryu's CPR on the rooftop. Tanaka flushed brightly.

"I-I-It's nothin'. Forget it," he dismissed, horribly discomposed inside. The corner of Kenma's mouth curled slightly, but his somber frown returned when he wobbled into the presidential foyer and after Kageyama shut the door.

The space had been renovated since the coup: carpets replaced and walls repainted. A new sofa against one wall lured Kageyama to lounge in right now. Opposite a redwood coffee table on which Kageyama lazily planted his feet, Kenma shyly sat on a loveseat, his hands tucked into his lap nervously.

"So, I'm sorry for not coming sooner," he began. His eyes squinted. "I couldn't—I couldn't bring myself to come considering my actions." He'd rehearsed this but was hiccupping back tears regardless.

Kageyama's face remained composed but inwardly quite somber. He rose above the former civil servant and planted his palms on Kenma's shoulders, prompting his guest to face him with curiosity.

"Listen," Tobio choked, "you have no right to complain to _me_ about _your_ actions." He released Kenma and returned to the couch. Kozume knew exactly what Kageyama meant, and his urge to cry subsided.

Yes, they both were guilty of terrible choices that night, and while Kenma would forever feel that his own were the more grievous, Kageyama felt similarly about his own too.

And not just them: Tanaka, Aone, Kindaichi—many people were all trying to come to terms with decisions they'd made and the consequences they'd had.

Nevertheless, those decisions had been made, and they had had their consequences. Nothing would change that. And discarding the past in hope of the future was, in part, the real significance of today for many.

A knock came at the door, presaging a coordinator announcing the thirty-minute call for the start of the ceremony. Kenma and Tobio concurred in not discomposing themselves further so they could look their best for the cameras.

"Are you ready, Mr. Prime Minister?" Kenma began. Kageyama rose stolidly and marched into the center of the foyer.

"Please start getting used to my new title, since it will become official today," Tobio declared.

Kenma gulped.

"Of course," he said, "Mr. Vice-President."

Then the adjoining door to the president's office slipped open, from which popped out the curious head of the president, Shoyo Hinata. Kozume hoisted himself up with his cane and came out from behind the couch. Shoyo's eyes widened at the sight of Kenma, whom he'd not seen or spoken to in six months. Kozume was deathly afraid he'd receive a reprimand or a rebuke from the president.

But instead, Shoyo's face lit up with glee.

"Kenma!" he screamed. He skipped into the foyer and embraced Kozume, knocking the disabled police veteran against the back of the loveseat. The president squeezed tightly, his eyes drenching with tears. In the threshold of the office, Hitoka shyly sidled into the space, her chin tucked against her chest. Kenma spotted her wary looks.

"Oh," he said, secretly hoping addressing the woman would distract Shoyo from his overjoyed embrace. "How is the First Lady?"

Yachi gave a petite smile. She was overly reticent in her new position, but when she saw her partner's spiritedness, it always cheered her up. She beamed and tried to force a reply but managed only a really energetic "hmm!"

Kageyama looked away to avoid being caught grinning. Yachi winced at her own shyness; it still took some work getting used to being the center of attention.

Finally Shoyo propelled away from Kenma and beheld him intimately, one hand softly resting on Kozume's shoulder.

"You're sticking around for Kageyama's inauguration, right?"

"Uh…." Kenma actually hadn't planned on staying, still too disgraced with himself. He came in order to make amends to Shoyo and nothing more. "Well, I—"

"Wait! I know the perfect place for you to sit," Shoyo interrupted. "Come on!" He bounced towards the door as Yachi giggled. Shoyo waved Kenma over, as Kozume hobbled as efficiently as he could to the president's side. Kageyama smiled sheepishly, quietly proud this was the person he'd chosen to support what seemed like eons ago.

Once in the hallway, Shoyo rambled on about some of the architectural changes to the estate. Some managed to be elegant while others were quirkily minimalist, befitting Shoyo's loathe of pretention. Kenma couldn't focus on the words, however, with his conscience welling up inside of him. He had yet to tell the president what he'd wanted to say.

"Shoyo," he began firmly. Hinata paused instantly. "I'm sorry…. For everything. For betraying your trust. For letting things happen like they did. For hurting you…and so many others…." His eyes watered until he was in full tears. "…For not coming to see you all this time." He smothered his brow with his forearm. The feelings he'd stuffed inside for six months were finally out, and he didn't know how to feel or how Shoyo would react. He still expected to be turned away like a misbehaved dog.

But Shoyo grasped both of Kenma's arms gleefully and smiled.

"That's behind us, remember? We're looking to the future now."

Kenma gaped at the man's impeccable and immutable spirit—that of the man who would bring their country to a brighter future.

"Mr. President," called the coordinator who checked in on Kageyama earlier, "let's get you set up."

"Got it!" Shoyo cried jollily. "Let's hurry," he said to Kenma and asked Yachi if she could tell Kiyoko to find a seat for him. Kozume did not object. "We can talk more afterward," Shoyo continued. "I have so much to tell you too."

"Thank you," Kozume said with a rarely seen smile. Shoyo's wide beam somehow became even wider, and he skipped away to get ready.

That was Shoyo Hinata, their president. And Kenma, Hitoka, and even Tobio took special note that the man's unbounded joy at this moment was perfectly reminiscent of the enthusiasm he possessed upon his election one year ago.

* * *

 **A quick aside about my next fic: I hinted in an author's note about doing an outer space AU. It would star most of the players from Karasuno, Nekoma, Dateko, Seijoh, Fukurodani, and Shiratorizawa. Unfortunately, as in love with the premise and story as I am, given my best estimate, it would be at least 125 chapters long. O_o; I am very much willing to write it, but practically I can't commit to something that huge right now, especially not at the publishing rate of this story.**

 **Instead, among the multiple Haikyuu WIPs I have in my head, I've rounded down my choice to two of them. I think I know which will be the one I write, but I am going to wait before starting it. Instead, I have started work on a Haikyuu crack vid (with a twist) that I've had in mind for months but have been unable to make because of the focus on this fic. Once the vid is published, I expect to begin my next Haikyuu "epic." Follow me on tumblr, stylinbreeze60, to find out when the vid goes live and for more fic updates. I still might post one-shots in the meantime.**

 **Back to this story, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter or the story as a whole. Any suggestions on things for me to bear in mind and improve on in future works is welcome too.**

 **Thank you all again for your support and love!**

 **Breeze**


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